How Their Love Began
by Kyree Winx
Summary: Miriam and Oritel are Bloom's parents and the King and Queen of Sparks. But how in the universe did they meet and fall in love in order to set up the events that made Bloom famous? This is the story of how they met and fell in love, from my point of view.
1. Introduction

How Their Love Began

By: Kyree Winx

We all know the story of Bloom, daughter of King Oritel and Queen Miriam of Sparks, heroine of the magical universe and the bane of all evil. We all know of the Winx Club, the group of girls Bloom befriends, who volunteer to help her on her quest to find her identity and restore her kingdom and people, forever acting as her allies through thick and thin. We know about the Specialists and Nabu, the boyfriends of the incredible Winx, always there to support and guide them through their toughest battles. They're the greatest and they'll always be victorious in their fight against evil.

But let's back up a bit. I'm taking on a challenge I've seen nobody take on. Everybody is stuck on Bloom and the Winx club, or the more modern characters of the Winx Club series. I've decided to go pre-Winx Club and try something else. I'm going to try and write the events of Miriam and Oritel's early relationship, before they were even married and had their spectacular daughters Bloom and Daphne. I'm not going to guarantee it will be right, some of it may sound a bit off from what you know. But this will be what I know and I'll appreciate any input or constructive criticisms you may have about this.

In this story, the universe is, as always with my stories, in peril. An evil threatens the higher kingdoms of the Magical Dimension, forcing many parents to send their children away. Miriam and Oritel, plus many other characters you'll know (Luna, Radius, Erendor, Semara, Niobe, Teredor), are going to the schools in the realm of Magix, at the insistence of their parents who fear for their safety. It was in Magix that these characters meet and together face many dangers and defeat evil, without knowing their children would later on do the same thing. Miriam and Oritel meet and eventually fall in love with one another, although not at first mind you. It is these first years together that truly shape the future of the magical universe.


	2. Chapter 1: Settling In at Alfea

**Chapter One - Settling In at Alfea**

She gazed out the window of the shuttle bus headed to the Alfea College for Fairies. Rain slid down the window, like tears. Her gaze shifted to the landscape racing past the bus. Beautiful green trees rose up, walling in the road that went from Magix to the college. The skies were a dark gray, threatening, when they were suddenly lit up with a flash of lightning. She jumped and hugged herself tightly. Sliding further down in her seat, she fought off tears of despair and focused instead on her upcoming years of fairy training. They would be hard, especially with the current events.

Finally the bus rounded a curve in the road and the Alfea college came into sight. The school stood tall and graceful, it's overall atmosphere clashing with the dangerous weather. Everything about the Alfea school screamed "all girls school." The pale pink walls and the blue rotundas along with the unique doors shaped to give the image of wings gave the school a delicate beauty. Some relief flooded her as the bus pulled up to the Alfea main gates. The driver called out the name of the stop, and the shaken passenger snatched her bags and hurried her way off the bus. She was happy to be at the Alfea School, hopefully safe from the terrors the universe currently faced.

"Miriam!" The shout made the girl jump for the second time that day and she turned to see the source of the voice. Up ran a beautiful girl, her pale blonde hair flowing behind her like a moonbeam, light blue eyes wide and happy. She wore a fashionable jacket colored pale blue with a white skirt and white rain boots. In her hand she held an umbrella. "You're crazy! It's raining like cats and dogs out here and you're not even wearing a raincoat!" The girl got close to Miriam so that the umbrella covered the both of them and Miriam cried out in happiness.

She dropped her bags and threw her arms about the girl. "Oh Luna!" Miriam cried.

Luna hugged Miriam back then grabbed one of the dropped bags. "Let's get out of this yucky weather, shall we?" Miriam snatched her remaining bags from the wet ground and allowed Luna to lead her toward the main gate.

"Name and realm?" A woman wearing a long cloak like rain coat gazed over her spectacles down at the two girls before her. Her violet eyes smiled, her pink hair was pulled up into a simple up do.

"I'm Miriam of Sparks." Miriam stated.

"Welcome to Alfea Miriam. I'm called Miss Faragonda." Miss Faragonda looked down at her clipboard. "Yes. You're on the list. You'd best get on inside. This storm is something fierce indeed." She cast a look cautiously at the sky. "Go on in." Miriam nodded, gazing at the woman until Luna grabbed her arm and dragged her into the Alfea grounds.

Miriam observed the scene of the Alfea grounds. There were few students, and even they were hard to spot because they were sticking to the covered parts of the school. Paved pathways and benches provided the grounds with a park like feeling. Miriam tried hard to imagine a beautiful sunshiny day where she could just walk those pathways and enjoy herself. But it was hard to with the flashing lightning and the rumble of thunder.

"Stop daydreaming Miriam." Luna tugged again on Miriam's arm. Miriam obliged and followed her friend into the school itself.

While the outside of the school screamed all girls school and one with nature, the inside of the school shouted proper and orderly. The halls were spacious and the walls were covered with tall portraits and pictures. The windows would've typically let in copious amounts of sunlight on Miriam's dream day, but now only the gray skies outside could be seen.

"Gather around now first years! Come along now! Headmistress Heatherue wishes to give you a warm welcome." Miss Faragonda called. Luna and Miriam joined a throng of teenage girls who obviously felt similarly about being here as Miriam.

"Welcome to Alfea! I am your headmistress, Heatherue and I wish to welcome you all to this proud, esteemed school! Alfea is not just a school. Alfea is beyond a school. Alfea is an actual experience that I hope you girls will come to receive openly. It will be here where you will learn about your powers, learn what you need to survive as fairies, and meet countless allies and friends that should last you a lifetime. Now I understand Alfea started early this year, and the last thing any normal person wants is to go to school a lengthened period of time, but I hope you will come to love being here at Alfea and that you will cherish everyday here. Yes, I hope you'll even cherish those pop quizzes and end of the term tests. Now go and begin your Alfea experience."

The group of teenage girls applauded the headmistress politely, then dispersed. Luna smiled at Miriam reassuringly. "It's going to be fun here."

"Yes." Miriam murmured to herself. Fun here but warring elsewhere. Miriam continued to think while Luna took hold of her arm and led her up a set of stairs leading to dorm rooms. Luna continued her mindless chatter during this and Miriam only caught bits of what she said, including the words "boys" and "Red Fountain."

"Miriam. Are you listening to me?" Luna shook Miriam's shoulder and Miriam snapped out of her daze. "I said that this is our dorm room! We're sharing! Isn't that fantastic!" Miriam gave her friend a smile and nodded.

Their dorm room was planned to be a haven, for it was built beautifully and spaciously for its resident fairies. The walls were pale blue, Miriam supposed for Luna's liking, and the floors a lighter wood. Beautiful scenic pictures were hung on both sides. Bookshelves and beds were available to both girls, but there was only one closet, which Miriam could see Luna had already claimed.

"Shall we unpack your luggage?" Luna asked and was already doing so before she asked. Miriam chuckled and Luna clapped her hands and Miriam's things went to their respective places. "Oh dear me! What an exhausting chore!" Luna sighed dramatically. Miriam shook her head and sat calmly on her bed. Luna drifted over and sat down next to her. "How bad is it on Sparks?" Luna asked gently.

Miriam let out a breath of air and fell back on her bed. "There were several attacks on the mansions of officials. When ours was attacked, my parents finally made me go to Alfea. I fought them of course, but they won. Parents always win you know." Miriam looked out the window. "Why Sparks?" Miriam of course knew the answer.

"Because Sparks is important. Sparks to the universe is like…shoes to me!" Luna joked. Miriam gave her a serious look and Luna went quiet. Finally Luna spoke again, this time without a joking comment. "The attacks on Solaria got out of hand too. My parents made me leave. I told them I would fight, but they just said I was being crazy. Daddy told me that I needed to become a full-fledged fairy before I truly fought the universe's evil. It was logical of course, and I had to obey their wish after that." Luna gazed at Miriam. "I heard even the Solarian king had his son moved from Solaria to Magix."

Miriam gave a nod. She too heard that rumor. Whether or not it was true, she didn't know. "I know the Sparks king had his son moved to the Red Fountain school a week ago."

"Never met him. Do you think he's handsome?" Luna asked obnoxiously. Miriam rolled her eyes and grabbed the pillow at the head of her bed. She swung it and smacked Luna, who shrieked at the shock of being hit. The two fell silent as the door to their room opened and someone peered in.

"What are you two doing?" A girl stood in the doorway of their room.

"Hello Niobe!" Luna grinned. "About time you showed up!"

Niobe smiled back then looked at Miriam. She was eyeing Miriam, so Miriam took this time to examine the new girl. Her dark brown hair was pulled back, unlike Miriam and Luna's free flowing locks, and Miriam saw lighter brown streaks accented Niobe's curls. She had a dark brown skin tone and her teal eyes gazed hard at Miriam. Miriam stood up and strode over to Niobe, holding out her hand. "Hello Niobe. I'm Miriam of Sparks."

Niobe took Miriam's hand and they shook. "I'm Niobe of Tides." Niobe smiled. "I'm taking the dorm room across the hall."

"All by yourself! Lucky!" Luna smirked. "At least I didn't get paired up with Semara. She's so…"

"Witchy?" Niobe suggested. Luna nodded. "I know. I feel for the girl who did. I'm going to try and help her out as much as I can." Niobe said. "So you two are talking about the wars huh?"

"Yes. Miriam and I were shipped out unwillingly because of them. Even the various princes of the realms were being forced to go to safety." Luna looked at Niobe. "What of your fiancé? Teredor, was it? Was he forced to go?"

"No. He was already going to Red Fountain, so they didn't really make him go." Niobe sighed. "I've never even met him face to face. Now, with me going to Alfea, we're bound to meet, right? Oh Luna! I want to get to know him before I marry him."

"You're in an arranged marriage? How awful!" Miriam gasped. To marry someone, not because you loved them, but because it will raise your family status was horrible. Miriam couldn't imagine her parents ever doing that to her. She believed her parents wanted her to be happy, and if she fell in love with a bum, so be it.

"I don't want to think of it that way. I've never met the boy, so I can't judge him off the bat." Niobe pointed out. "Maybe I'll come to like him."

"Maybe." Miriam said. Though she still didn't agree with the idea of arranged marriages. It just seemed so…restraining.

"Oh Miriam. You're always for equality…and equal treatment…and rights for all!" Luna said.

"Uh, Luna. You just rephrased 'equality' twice." Niobe laughed.

"I'm not much for words ok?" Luna pouted.

"Except when it comes to clothes." Miriam sang and she and Niobe fell into a fit of giggles as Luna tried to smack the both of them with Miriam's pillow. "Or boys!" Miriam added, earning her another smack.

"This will be long year with the two of you picking on me!" Luna moaned. "You two just met and now you're ganging up on me!" Miriam laughed and she and Niobe just hugged Luna.

"We're just joking. No need to get all emotional!" Niobe said. She looked at Miriam and Miriam nodded. "We'd never be mean to you Luna. You're too nice. Well, except when our appearances are involved. Then you have a total heyday of unwanted advice giving." Luna threw Niobe a glare and Niobe raised her hands in surrender. "I'm done. I promise."

"Annoying, mean friends." Luna grumbled and stood up. "I've got to go and see this Professor Wizgiz guy." Luna wandered out of the dorm room, mumbling angrily.

"Oh. I hope she'll be okay." Miriam said watching her friend go.

"She'll be fine." Niobe said. "She's a bit of a dramatist. I almost feel for the guy she'll date. Their relationship will probably end up as a soap opera." Miriam smiled and nodded. "So Miriam, how do you and Luna know one another?" Niobe asked.

"She and I ended up going to the same finishing school together. We just hit it off." Miriam shrugged. "It's been that way for a few years now."

"Yeah. Lord knew she needed finishing school. Was a total clutz from birth I tell ya." Niobe sat down in Luna's spot. "She and I have been friends since we were little kids. Our parents apparently had ties to each other from their high school years."

"Wow. I've never really made a friend quite like that. I was more of a loner." Miriam said.

"Surprising. I mean, you seem really nice. I'm a pretty good judge of character, and honey, you've got character." Niobe insisted.

"Thank-you." Miriam blushed. "I don't know. I just have a hard time of connecting with people, that's all."

"That's funny. You just made a connection with me, here and now." Niobe pointed out.

Miriam thought about this and contradicted her statement. "Well what if you're just a very outgoing personality?" Miriam countered.

Niobe just shrugged. "You can either take my judgement or throw it away. I'll still have that same opinion on you until I see you turn purple." Miriam looked at her funny. Niobe laughed. "Change your character. But seeing you turn purple would freak me out."

Miriam laughed then. "Yes. And it would clash frightfully with my red hair. Luna would have a hey day!" The two of them had another moment of chuckles.

Niobe stood up then. "I have to go down to the library and check out some books. I'll see you at dinner." Niobe waved as she too vacated the room, leaving Miriam there to herself and her thoughts.

Miriam fell back down on her pillow and stared again out the window across the room. Homesickness and worry filled her as she thought about her family and her realm. She prayed they would both be safe and this dangerous war would be ended before something terrible could happen.


	3. Chapter 2: Oritel at Red Fountain

**Chapter Two - Oritel at Red Fountain**

Oritel's sword crashed against his opponents blade and immediately he maneuvered his blade to disarm his opponent. The boy just grunted and pulled back quickly, preventing Oritel from yanking the blade. Oritel cursed and took a defensive stance, preparing himself for the boy's attack. Immediately, the boy jabbed, but the boy was careless. Oritel took advantage of his opponent's reckless move and aimed where his opponent couldn't protect himself. The boy was knocked off his feet and his sword flew several feet away. Oritel aimed his blade at the boy's throat, then pulled away and faced the crowd behind him.

"Excellent Oritel! You're one of the best sword fighters I've ever had the opportunity to teach!" A grizzled man walked over to Oritel. He clapped a hand on Oritel's shoulder.

Oritel grinned and nodded, accepting the mentor's comment. "Thank-you Professor Harce. I really enjoy fighting with the sword."

Professor Harce laughed and turned to the group of students gathered in the gymnasium. "This is how you fight. Keep yourselves a cool head and think quickly on your feet. If your attack is deflected, don't dawdle. Immediately return to your defensive stance and prepare yourself for what ever the opponent has planned. Trip here got hasty and moved without thinking the consequences through. Up and at 'em Trip. You did very well, otherwise." Professor Harce caught sight of a clock across the room and grumbled. "Class dismissed. Get on out of here."

Oritel caught up to his buddies Radius and Erendor. The two boys gave him wide grins. "That was impressive!" Radius said, his light brown eyes shining.

"It's Oritel. If it ain't impressive, he won't do it." Erendor joked. Erendor and Radius laughed as Oritel tried to protest. "Oh come on Oritel! If you wouldn't get recognition for an activity, you wouldn't do it!" Erendor looked at Oritel knowingly, his dark brown eyes still laughing.

Oritel grinned and looked at the floor. Then he looked back at his buddies. "Well, I can't help that I'm so good at the recognizable activities!" He laughed as Erendor and Radius shared a couple of eye rolls. "What can I do? I love sword fighting."

"We've all got our loves. Oritel loves his sword. Erendor loves homework. My love just so happens to be chicks!" Radius said. "Have either of you heard if they're planning on having the homecoming dance earlier this year?"

"Do you really need to know this? What about getting your homework done and quitting procrastination?" Oritel asked as the trio entered their dorm room. He collapsed on one of the sofas and looked at Radius. "I mean, if you get grades like last year, you'll join next year's first years, and we'll leave you behind."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll pass, I promise." Radius sighed. Erendor joined Oritel in looking at Radius. "He's not kidding Radius. And so you know, women don't dig guys who can't pass school."

Oritel just let his friends bicker on. His gaze shifted to the rain falling outside the window. Watching the rain fall made Oritel think about the state of Sparks. Fear filled his thoughts then, for his people and his family. The warring on Sparks especially had gotten so bad…Oritel shook his head, shaking off those thoughts. Then a figure on the horizon caught his eye and he stared at it. "Speaking of women, didn't the Alfea school year just begin today?" Oritel asked.

Radius and Erendor stopped arguing and looked out the window. "Yeah. I heard it did. Some of the guys in the older grades went out there to greet their girlfriends and stuff." Radius said, raking a hand through his light red-brown hair.

"And you're not going to go greet your girlfriend? Oh wait…didn't she dump you?" Erendor snickered.

Oritel rolled his eyes at the cocky attitude Erendor was pulling to day. It wasn't that Erendor was a bad guy or anything. He and Radius never did get along. In fact, Erendor could be a pretty good guy once you knew him. But sometimes he just pushed it. "Come on Erendor. Grow up, would you? Stop picking on Radius." Oritel stood up and stretched. "Let's head downstairs and get some lunch."

"Agreed." Radius said. The trio of boys rushed back down the wide hallways of Red Fountain, until they came to the cafeteria.

Oritel sniffed and wrinkled his nose. "Ugh. I think I've changed my mind. I'll wait for dinner." Oritel was about to turn and leave the cafeteria when he spotted someone sitting at one of the tables. "Hey Teredor! Didn't see you in fighting class today!" Oritel hurried over and sat next to the dark skinned, dark haired boy.

The boy looked up at him from his text book and gave a grin. "I asked to use my fighting class time to work on a report for Professor Writ instead. Harce was okay with it."

"Nerdy." Radius said as he sat across from them. Oritel threw him a dark look. Radius held up his hands. "What? I wouldn't miss fighting class to write a report."

"So speaks the worst fighter in fighting class. What do your grades have to say about that?" Oritel asked.

Radius fell quiet, but of course Erendor had something cocky to say. "Hey, Teredor. I heard you got yourself an arranged marriage this summer." Oritel saw Teredor look down at his text book without a word. "What's her name?" Erendor asked, unaffected by the awkward silence.

"Niobe." Teredor murmured.

Oritel shook his head. As if a name could describe a person. Teredor obviously hadn't met the girl. It was just crazy to set two people up and expect them to love one another just because it was ideal. Oritel knew from all the successful relationships he'd seen that love wasn't meant to be perfect. "You've never met her. How can your parents just expect you to marry her like that?" Oritel asked, annoyed. Teredor looked up at him. "Well, it is a tradition on Tides. My parents were set up like that." Oritel snorted.

"That was graceful, your majesty." Erendor said sarcastically.

" Well excuse me and I'm not sorry, it's just that arranged marriage is so…well…" Oritel thought hard for a word to describe it. Barbaric? No, too harsh. Primitive? No, not true. "wrong." Oritel finally said.

"I guess. But wouldn't it be wrong to say it's a bad idea now? I mean I haven't even met the girl. She could be the one." Teredor stared off into space as though he were imagining the girl.

"Even so, it's forceful. Controlling." Oritel said stubbornly. In his mind, arranged marriages would forever be a sin.

Teredor just sighed and closed his text book. "I was going to head to Alfea. I heard from my parents that she was being moved there while the war is being fought on Tides. I figured I could just…well, meet her. Introduce myself." Teredor looked at the boys. "Want to come with? I could really use the support."

"Sure. We'll come." Radius said. "We've got the rest of the afternoon off anyhow. The head master called a meeting regarding the war going on." He stood up and headed toward the exit. Erendor followed him, but Oritel hung back to talk to Teredor alone.

"How are things on Tides?" Oritel asked.

"Niobe's father had to double his number of troops. He had to call for a draft. It really angers me that boys my age are being forced to fight while I'm here safe at Red Fountain." Teredor clenched his fists.

Oritel nodded. He basically felt the same about Sparks, minus the draft part. Oritel's parents would never force the people to become soldiers. "We'll get our chance Teredor. Red Fountain doesn't run all year." Oritel said.

"Hey! What's taking you two! Erendor's got one of the school's ships running! We gotta hurry it up if we plan on coming back before curfew!" Radius called from the entrance to the craft hangar. Oritel and Teredor rushed after Radius and they all boarded the ship Erendor had running.

Soon they were on their way to Alfea. Oritel gazed back at the Red Fountain School as they flew. The grand architecture rose up triumphantly in the gray skies. The brighter reds and yellows of the stone walls contrasted the dull gray greatly. Oritel then turned his gaze to the rushing forest below the ship and watched the trees pass by quickly. Magix was truly a beautiful realm, but with the constant rain a sense of impending doom fell over it. Oritel couldn't shake the feeling of that impending doom, no matter how much he and his friends joked and laughed and acted like they were just going to school. They were taking refuge from some great evil and that evil would soon come and destroy them all if it wasn't stopped.

"Alfea straight ahead!" Erendor called. Oritel saw Teredor tense in anticipation and smiled some. Teredor was actually excited to meet Niobe, whether they were forcefully engaged or not.

Erendor landed the ship with finesse, to impress whatever girls might be watching Oritel assumed. But Oritel was sure no girls saw because from what he could tell nobody was even outside. The rain drenched courtyards were vacant of any students. But he didn't tell Erendor that.

"You ready to meet your doom?" Erendor asked Teredor. Teredor gave a nervous nod.

Oritel gave the boy a grin. "Don't worry about what Erendor says. Everything will be fine, you'll see." Oritel reassured. Teredor nodded again, though he was a bit more relaxed.

"What are we waiting for? Sunshine?" Radius jumped up and hurried off the ship in a rush. Erendor just shrugged and followed him off. Oritel gave Teredor another reassuring grin and the two of them got off the ship to go meet Niobe.


	4. Chapter 3: The Reading and a Field Trip

**Chapter Three - The Reading and A Field Trip**

Niobe looked happy as she spoke to Miriam at the breakfast of their second day of Alfea. "Oh Miriam. I was most surprised. He came in with some friends of his and formally introduced himself to me. Teredor was so handsome too! Definitely surprised." Niobe looked dreamily off into space.

Miriam could have screamed. Instead she spoke quietly to her love struck friend. "Niobe. You've met him once! How can you be so infatuated with him! You're forcefully being married to him." Miriam shook her head in disgust and amazement.

"Oh Miriam. He was so kind and he wasn't pushy like most guys. And he said he wanted to really get to know me before we got married. At least I ended up with a handsome and gentlemanly guy, not just some pompous prince. What are the chances?" Niobe smiled brightly. Miriam just sipped her orange juice quietly and chose not to say anything else on the matter. She barely knew Niobe, so who was she to go about stating her opinions on relationships to the girl?

Luna joined the two girls, and Miriam gazed over her breakfast plate as the two chattered away. Apparently Luna had met one of Teredor's friends and fell smitten to the boy. 'Love-sick fools.' Miriam thought quietly to herself. Had to be hormones doing the talking. Just yesterday the two girls seemed perfectly rational of thought. But now they were giggling and gossiping away. Miriam gave a small sigh and gazed out the window, an action she'd developed into a habit.

Again the day was dreary and wet, the rain's attack was relentless on Magix. The rain really did bother Miriam, but most others ignored it and went about their business, sadly, as though there were no war going on. Miriam supposed they really wouldn't car until it affected the people of Magix and other untouched realms directly. Only then would their be absolute panic and extreme pandemonium. Miriam continued to ponder these thoughts until a friendly voice interrupted her.

"Is something bothering you Miriam?"

Miriam looked up and noticed Miss Faragonda staring down at her with concern in her eyes. Miriam put on a bright smile and shook her head. "No, Miss Faragonda, but thank-you for asking."

Miss Faragonda's worry lessened some. "That's good dear, I'm glad you're alright. But, perhaps you ought to be getting to class?" Miriam's gaze quickly scanned the Great Hall and she saw that all the students had left . Miriam jumped up quickly and ran off. She was going to be late! To her first class of the semester! She didn't want to seem like a bad student at the start of the school year. Miriam whipped down hallways, trying to find the class she was supposed to be in. Her cheeks were burning as she did so, and Miriam tried her best to fight the embarrassment.

"Come on! Where is the Magical Fauna and Flora class?" Miriam hissed angrily. She finally found herself standing in an unrecognizable hallway and stopped. "Uh-oh." Miriam spun on her heel to back track, but soon she found herself entirely lost. "I didn't see this hallway." Miriam breathed. How was she going to find her classroom now? Miriam noted the several doors lining the hallway. She opted to open one of them and see if someone could give her directions.

She slowly turned the handle of the first door and found herself staring into a broom closet. "Hello broom. You wouldn't happen to know where the Magical Fauna and Flora class is, would you?" Miriam said sarcastically as she closed the door. She tried the second door and found a completely vacant class room. "Handy." Miriam muttered.

Then Miriam tried the third door. It opened up into a dark room. Miriam felt curiosity get the best of her and she made a small flame appear in her hand. The dark room lit up then, and Miriam gasped. She found herself standing in a high room with strung up platforms and tables about. Books lined the walls to the ceilings. "So many books." Miriam breathed in awe. Books had always been Miriam's passion, the library her safe haven. Seeing these books made Miriam want to sit down and read, ignoring the evil that threatened the universe.

"Can I help you miss?" Miriam turned about quickly, trying to identify the source of the voice. Finally she saw a small creature fly up before her. It was a pixie robed in blue, donning the matching blue hat and a pair of spectacles. She flew closer to Miriam. "I'm the pixie of Alfea, Concorda. Are you lost?" Concorda asked kindly.

Miriam shook her head to snap herself out of the daze she fell into. "Uh…yes. A bit. You wouldn't happen to know where the Magical Fauna and Flora class is being held, would you?" Miriam gazed hopefully at the pixie.

Concorda laughed. "Of course dear! You're not that far off actually! Just take the left corridor, turn two rights and you'll be there."

"Oh thank-you!" Miriam said gratefully.

"You're welcome dear." Concorda smiled, but then she frowned. "What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't introduce myself. I'm Miriam of Sparks." Miriam gave Concorda a proper curtsy.

Concorda nodded. "Miriam. If I may can I do an aura reading of you?"

Miriam found the request odd, but she didn't see any harm in it. "Sure." Miriam answered. Concorda motioned for Miriam to follow her and Miriam obeyed. She had Miriam sit down.

"Now close your eyes, my dear." Concorda floated about Miriam's head, scrutinizing Miriam carfully. Miriam obliged and closed them, though she found it odd why the pixie would want to do an aura reading on her. "Oh dear." Concorda gasped.

Miriam's eyes snapped open and immediately fixed on the pixie. "What is it?" Miriam asked, fear rising in her tone.

Concorda floated and settled down on the table, gazing up at Miriam the entire time. "Miriam. I've looked into your future. Your entire life is filled with countless perils and dangers. Your family will suffer greatly from the evil that currently threatens us all." Concorda gazed worriedly at Miriam. "Though I don't believe your greatest sacrifice will come until much later in life. That is good in some ways. But your daughter will end up paying for it dearly."

"What do you mean?" Miriam leaned in toward the pixie, all her attention fixed on the small creature before her. "What does that all mean?"

Concorda shook her head. "I'm sorry Miriam. But that warning was all I could divine from your aura. It was all that destiny and the fates chose to give me. It's all I can give you." Concorda looked sadly at Miriam. "I'm sorry."

"That's fine." Miriam sighed. She leaned back in the chair and pondered the words. 'My daughter will end up paying for it dearly.' She just wouldn't have a daughter then. "I ought to be off. Thank-you again for giving me directions." Miriam stood up and left the small library of the Alfea pixie, still thinking deeply about what the pixie had divined.

"The evil that currretly threatens us all." Miriam said softly. Nobody even knew what the evil was. The evil was just there, its armies were just fighting. The evil didn't seem to have any purpose other than to destroy. It didn't seem right. Miriam turned another right and found herself staring at an open door classroom. Inside she spotted Luna writing on her paper and Niobe listening intently to the professor. Miriam took a deep breath and entered the classroom.

"Ahh. Yes. Miriam of Sparks I presume?" The professor teaching the class gazed at Miriam indifferently. "Late on the first day?"

"I…uh…I accidently got lost." Miriam explained nervously.

The professor just waved his hand. "No matter. Just be sure that you're on time from now on. Take a seat next to Miss Luna over there and take down some notes. We were just discussing the magical essences of certain ivys." Miriam followed his direction and sat next to Luna. The professor just continued from where he cut off, as though Miriam hadn't even entered the room.

"Where were you? Niobe and I told you we ought to get going to class and you just mumbled a yes to us. We thought you'd be right behind us." Luna whispered.

Miriam threw her an apologetic look. "I did come right behind you. But I got a bit held up. I need to talk to you and Niobe about it after class." Miriam and Luna fell silent as the professor took his attention away from the chalkboard and faced the students. When he looked away again, Miriam and Luna continued to talk.

"What do you need to talk to us about?" Luna asked doggedly.

Miriam shook her head, trying to signal Luna to wait until after class, but Luna continued to pester her. Finally Miriam whispered something back. "I ran into the Alfea pixie Concorda. I'll tell you all about it after class." Niobe threw them a warning look and they once again fell silent.

Miriam soon grew bored of the lecture and doodled mindlessly on her paper before her. The strange aura reading kept coming into her mind. She began to feel some worry for her family back on Sparks. Concorda said her family would suffer at the hands of the current evil. Should Miriam warn them? Or was it a warning about her later family? Whatever husband and children she'd have, her grandchildren. That daughter that was mentioned perhaps. Maybe that was what the reading spoke of. But what in the universe could she do about it? If destiny was involved, didn't it mean that those factors were set, impossible to change or prevent? Miriam turned these thoughts and questions in her mind over and over. She had to do something. She couldn't just let her family suffer at the hands of this unknown evil.

Eventually the professor turned back to the class and spoke directly to them. Miriam snapped out of her mind wandering and acted like she was focused and attentive. "Oh yes. In two days time we'll be taking a field trip into Black Mud Swamp. Headmistress Heatherue has urged me to move it ahead of schedule due to the weather issue outside. We were afraid the water levels in the swamps would become too high by the time the scheduled field trip came around. So I wish for you all to be prepared and dressed appropriately in boots and rain gear for the excursion. You may partner up with whom you wish, but I want no individuals and no more than six to a group. Understand?" The professor began to turn his attention back to the chalkboard, but stopped. A look of annoyance crossed his face. "Oh. And you will be escorted by Red Fountain students as a safety precaution, at the insistence of Headmistress Heatherue. But don't think of this trip as a date! It's a graded assignment." Miriam saw gleeful expressions on her friends' faces and rolled her eyes. They smiled at her and she smiled back, though on the inside, Miriam was groaning in angst. Just what she needed. A field trip into the gross, yucky swamp with her love sick friends and their boys!


	5. Chapter 4: Black Mud Swamp

**Chapter 4- Field Trip to Black Mud Swamp**

Oritel stepped out of the Spartan hatch of the Red Fountain ship into the wild flora and watery mud of the famed Black Mud Swamp. From where he stood he could see that the water levels were high indeed, even for the swamp. He shook his head. The Alfea faculty insisted the students still go on the dang trip, despite the universe's predicament and the abnormal weather on Magix.

"Could be worse, Oritel." Radius winced as he too stepped out into the mud. "We could not be escorting beautiful Alfea fairies." Radius smiled, but Oritel could see it was forced.

Erendor walked up next to Oritel and responded sarcastically to Radius' comment. "It'll be fun to woo the beautiful women in the wild, wild, soggy wilderness. Won't it?"

Oritel just shrugged and followed the several other Red Fountain students selected for the assignment. Oddly, the others were all sophomores. This fact made Oritel feel especially proud of himself. Obviously he, Radius, and Erendor were all seen as top students to be chosen to work a sophomore level assignment. Either that or these sophomores were the bottom of their class. But Oritel liked to see that his glass was half full, not half empty.

"Radius!" A beautiful blonde waved from a group of girls not far off. Radius raised his hand in greeting to Luna, then waggled his eyebrows at his friends.

"You'd be lucky to end up escorting her dude." Erendor pointed out.

"I'll take those odds!" Radius answered Erendor cheerfully.

"Welcome Specialists!" Oritel saw a man standing before the group of raincoat clad Alfea students. "I am Professor Encastus. We greatly appreciate your coming out here to escort the students. It will be a great learning experience for both groups I'm sure."

"It's a pleasure to be escorting these fine ladies Professor." One of the sophomores replied smoothly.

The Professor nodded. "Excellent. Enough exchanging pleasantries. You students have three hours to make your way through the swamp. Anybody who arrives after that will have failed the assignment. If you are in trouble, merely send up a signal and I'll have your group picked up immediately. Good luck and begin!"

The Professor turned to the group of Specialists. "You four can go with that group of ladies there. You two with that group. You two with that set of students. And you three…" Professor Encastus looked at Oritel and his friends. "…how about that group over there?" The Professor motioned toward the very group that Luna was in.

Radius immediately threw Oritel a grin and strode over to the group of ladies. Oritel just rolled his eyes and followed Radius.

Radius confidently walked up to the group of girls. Luna stood between two other girls, smiling and batting her eyelashes. "Hello ladies. I'm Radius. These are my buddies, Erendor and Oritel, and the three of us were given the pleasure of escorting the three of you through the treacherous Black Mud Swamp." Radius then flashed a brilliant smile, especially aimed for Luna. Luna and Niobe giggled and gave shy greetings.

The third member of their group looked exasperatedly at them then introduced herself. "Hello. I'm Miriam." Oritel gazed at this new girl.

She had her long red hair pulled back into a simple pony tail. Her green eyes were piercing as she stared down each of the boys boldly. Miriam's pale skin tone showed starkly against the dark mud and dark skies surrounding them. Miriam gave them a small smile as she introduced herself. Oritel just kept gazing at her. It wasn't her beauty that had him entranced, though. Miriam was beautiful, yes, but something about her was tugging at the back of Oritel's mind. As if he'd met her before…

"Shall we be going?" Niobe asked. She'd been disappointed that Teredor hadn't been selected for the assignment, so she immediately fell into a 'let's get down to business' attitude.

Oritel nodded. "Yes. We've only got three hours to navigate our way through this forsaken swamp. The sooner we get out of here, the better."

So they began to navigate their way through the swamp, which (except for the occasional killer frog) seemed devoid of any life other than vegetation. Even the vegetation seemed a bit lifeless. The excessive water levels had definitely taken their toll on the wildlife of the swamp. "Would it be possible to find an easier way through the swamp other than through the biggest, muddiest puddles we can find?" Luna moaned.

"The Voice of Nature is telling me and Miriam to go this way Luna. You can see if the Voice of the Shopping Mall will answer you and guide you to a neatly paved sidewalk." Niobe said sarcastically. Luna sniffed. "You're real hilarious, Niobe."

"What does this Voice of Nature sound like?" Radius asked.

Miriam and Niobe looked at one another then shrugged. "It's not so much as an actual voice. It's more like…intuition." Miriam said, trying to find the word that fit the description.

"Intuition?" Radius looked at Oritel for clarification.

"Gut feeling." Oritel said. Suddenly Miriam slipped and fell back into Oritel. Oritel caught her by the arms and steadied her. "You alright?" Oritel asked. Miriam gazed up at him with those green eyes and Oritel knew for certain he'd met her somewhere before.

"I'm fine thanks." Miriam slowly pulled away from him and straightened out. "I just slipped that's all." She walked away from him and caught up with Luna. Oritel just kept looking after her, racking his mind for an answer.

Erendor walked up next to him and looked at him. "You look…confused. Like you're stuck a hard math problem. What is it?"

Oritel looked at Miriam, then at Erendor. "Do you know her?" Oritel asked Erendor.

Erendor shook his head. "I don't know much about royalty or officials outside of Eraklyon. Sorry."

Oritel sighed. "That's okay. I just thought I may have met her before, though I can't remember for the life of me." Oritel confessed.

Erendor looked at Oritel. "Why don't you just ask her?" Erendor asked.

Oritel shook his head. "Forget that. That'd sound so weird. Umm, Miriam. Have we met before? It sounds like a line in one of those sappy romance movies!" Oritel scoffed. Erendor shrugged. "Suit yourself. Maybe you and your bad memory will remember in due time." Oritel was about to give a witty comment in return, but was interrupted by a piercing shriek from Luna.

"Luna? What is it?" Radius immediately rushed to Luna's side. Luna was jumping up and down. She stopped and threw a glare at Niobe. "She splashed mud on my designer rain coat!" Luna moaned.

Oritel held back a laugh as he saw Radius' worry turn into confusion. "Oh. It's just a rain coat. Their purpose is to get wet and dirty." Radius shrugged. "Why is it such a big deal?"

"Nobody ever seems to understand!" Luna shrieked and she went stomping off ahead angrily.

Radius started to follow her, but he hesitated. "Maybe she needs to cool off on her own." He said slowly.

Miriam placed a hand on his shoulder and nodded in agreement. "Don't worry about her too much. She just becomes overly attached to fashions. That's all. She'll be right as rain in no time." Miriam reassured. She then gave a soft laugh. "Right as rain." Miriam repeated to herself and she started off. Oritel watched her in wonder. How in the universe could he not remember her if he was sure he'd met her before?

Another of Luna's shrieks pierced the air, the sound reverberating fear rather than anger. Oritel snapped out of his wondering and began running ahead, his hand on his sword so he was prepared to draw it if needed. Behind him he heard Erendor telling Niobe and Miriam to stay back. Radius had caught up with Oritel and the two of them stealthily worked their way through swamp brush. They finally made their way into a clearing and saw Luna backing away from a large hulking creature. The creature snarled as it saw Oritel and Radius rush into the clearing.

"Are you alright?" Radius asked Luna. Luna gave a slight nod, but her gaze didn't leave the creature before them. Oritel squinted in attempt to identify the creature, but he hadn't been able to place it until lightning flashed violently. Oritel's jaw dropped in horror.

"Oritel!" Radius said as he grabbed Luna's hand and dragged her back behind him.

Oritel gulped and nodded. "I know, Radius. I see it." The brush behind them rustled and Oritel heard Erendor curse softly. A couple of gasps followed, and Oritel knew Niobe and Miriam were behind him too.

"It's a hydra." Miriam exclaimed. As she said the name, the hydra struck. Oritel jumped back as one of the hydra's heads snapped its jaw at where he stood. Oritel whipped out his sword and swung at the creature's head. The blade went clean through and Oritel felt a confidence rush through him. Maybe the creature wouldn't be so hard to defeat like he first thought. His class wasn't due to learn about hydras for another few weeks. Oritel was about to repeat his successful attack when he heard Radius shouting at him.

"Oritel! Stop!" Radius yelled. Oritel ignored his friend and continued hacking away, until Radius tackled him. Oritel and Radius went rolling through the mud.

"What? We don't want to kill the creature trying to kill us?" Oritel stared at his friend angrily.

"No Oritel! That's a hydra! I learned about them last year! You can't just sever their heads to kill them!" Radius yelled.

Oritel shook his head, thinking Radius must've lost his mind. "Alright. Enlighten me Radius. Why can't I just cut off their heads to kill them?" Oritel asked with sarcasm. Radius was looking at something behind Oritel, horror obvious in his face. Oritel turned and stared. "Oh."

The hydra that once had only five heads now had nine heads. It roared angrily and hissed at Oritel and Radius. A head snapped at Oritel and Radius and the two Specialists leaped out of the way. "How do you defeat these things, then?" Oritel yelled at Radius.

Radius stared in horror at the creature, then looked back at Oritel. "What if I told you I wasn't really paying attention?" Radius said, laughing nervously. Oritel groaned.

"Go Winx!" Oritel redirected his gaze and saw the three Alfea fairies transform into their Winx. Then he watched as Luna flew over him in a pale blue, one shoulder fairy outfit, her beautiful pale yellow wings fluttering.

"Moon beam!" Luna shouted and a blinding white blast flew from her outstretched hands and hit the hydra. It roared, but was unaffected by the attack. Luna gave a sigh, then yelped as one of the heads tried to bite her. She flew higher up. "Niobe! You try!"

Niobe had transformed into a lavender colored fairy outfit of shorts and a halter tank top, with green wrist accessory. She flew in close to the hideous creature with her green wings beating and aimed her blast upwards toward its head. "Tidal blast!" Niobe cried and her blue blast splashed into the creature. The hydra shook off the water and roared. "We've only managed to make it angry!" Niobe shouted as she completed some impressive evasive flying maneuvers to get away from the howling monster. "How are we going to defeat this thing?"

Oritel was about to suggest that the group ought to flee and try lose it in the sprawling jungle of the swamp. Then one of the hydra heads tried to attack him. Oritel dodged the vicious bite of the creature and brought up his sword quickly. He brought it back down, severing yet another of the hydra's heads. He heard a shout behind him from Miriam. "Look out!" Oritel felt an intense heat and instinctively dropped to the ground. The heat increased and disappeared completely. Oritel stood up and saw a headless hydra neck stump lying burnt in the dark mud. He turned and saw Miriam hovering her hands held out to deliver a blast. She was gorgeous in her green fairy outfit, wearing a dark green dress over thigh length leggings of a lighter colored material. She smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry."

"It's not growing back!" Erendor yelled.

Oritel looked back at the stump. It wasn't regenerating. So if they burned the stumps of the head, that would prevent the creature from regenerating. He turned back to Miriam. "I'm going to cut off the heads and I want you to quickly burn the necks of this thing. Alright?" Miriam nodded. Oritel and Miriam then commenced with their plan, becoming the ultimate duo in defeating the hydra. Miriam finally burned the last of the head stumps and Oritel collapsed in the mud.

"You did it!" Luna cried out happily and flew over to Miriam. The two hugged happily as their transformations wore off. They landed on the muddy ground with a plop and Luna gave a great moan.

Miriam laughed and stood up. "Look at us. We tried so hard not to get dirty too." Miriam said chuckling. "Well, at least Luna tried." Oritel looked around and saw the entire group was covered head to toe in mud, which was slowly getting washed off by the relentless rain.

They left the defeated hydra and set out again. They ran into no trouble whatsoever and eventually found the clearing where the finish had been set up. Their group, despite their little encounter with the hydra, wasn't the last one to arrive. "Excellent time ladies and gentlemen. Did you young students sense the Voice of Nature then?"

"Professor? The Voice of Nature led us to a hydra." Niobe said. The professor looked at her strangely then. "A what?" Professor Encastus stared at Niobe, disbelief easily noted in his tone.

"A hydra sir." Radius repeated Niobe's comment. "It attacked us after we stumbled upon it in the southwestern section of the swamp. We were able to defeat it after Miriam here cleverly burned the headless stumps of the creature." Radius said, giving Miriam a smile as he credited her.

"Hydra's don't reside in swampland." Professor Encastus looked at the group. "You're positive it was a hydra?" The Specialists all nodded solemnly.

"It's still there if you wish to see proof." Erendor stated.

The professor shook his head. "No. No. It's just strange that's all. Well, congratulations, you've all passed. There's a portal over there that will take you directly to Alfea girls. As for the boys, your ship is over there."

Oritel and Radius walked with the girls over to the portal. "Well, it was enjoyable to take that lovely stroll through Black Mud Swamp with you ladies." Radius took Luna's hand and bent to kiss it. "I'm hoping that I'll get to see you again, mademoiselle." Luna blushed fiercely and was dragged by Niobe into the portal. Radius nodded to Miriam and walked off toward the ship, leaving Miriam and Oritel standing before the Alfea portal alone.

"You did a good job back there." Oritel commented.

Miriam nodded. "You too." The two were quiet for a time.

"Well, you best be off to Alfea and get cleaned up." Oritel said. He began to turn away from Miriam when she asked him a question.

"Have we ever met before Oritel?"

Oritel turned back and blinked at the girl before him. She gazed at him hard, studying him as though she were trying to place him in some category. He thought about his answer for a minute. "No. I don't believe we have." Oritel said evenly.

Miriam's gaze and tone softened then. "Oh. Well, good-bye." And Miriam walked through the portal with Oritel gazing after her.


	6. Chapter 5: Shopping Losing Magix

Chapter Five - Shopping Losing Magix

Miriam tapped her pencil on the desk, her gaze fixed on the weather outside. The rain was still falling and many magical beings were being called in to use their powers to manage the flooding. The Black Mud Swamp had been especially affected, and was now caught in massive flash flooding. Professor Heatherue had the staff outside at that moment to perform an anti-flooding spell of some sort. But of course the flooding and rain wasn't what Miriam was thinking about. Nor was she thinking about the wars that worried her so at the beginning of the semester.

Miriam was thinking about Oritel. Something about him had intrigued her. The sound of his name had sparked something in her memory, his voice had too. There was something about him that made Miriam remember him somehow. And yet he denied ever having met Miriam ever. Miriam sighed and chewed on her pencil. The feeling was so strange and new to Miriam, but Miriam knew the feeling wasn't lying to her. She'd met Oritel somewhere, sometime.

"Miriam!" Luna waved her hand in front of Miriam's face. Miriam looked up at her friend. "Do…you… want…to…go…shopping…for…a…dress…with…me…and…Niobe?" Luna said slowly with exaggerated actions representing her words. Niobe was giggling and Miriam shook her head at Luna, annoyed. "No?" Luna asked. "Ok! Stay here then!"

"No! Luna! You know I want to go dress shopping!" Miriam jumped out of the desk chair and locked arms with her two friends. "Why are we going dress shopping?" Miriam asked then, confused.

"Uh…duh! The Homecoming dance is coming up! Duh!" Luna said. "Sure it isn't for another two weeks, but now's a good day to go!" Luna was speaking with such excitement.

Miriam gazed out another window. "Yes. Good day. The rain just makes a girl want to shop."

"I know right?" Luna gushed. "I'm hoping to get the prettiest dress so I can impress Radius! He's such a hunk. Do you think he'll ask me to dance? Of course he will. I'll be the belle of the ball!" And so Luna began her whole spiel on how she and Radius would fall passionately and madly in love with one another. Miriam and Niobe just exchanged looks of annoyance and Miriam chose to tune out of the Luna channel.

"You think she'll notice we're not paying her any attention?" Niobe asked Miriam.

Miriam shook her head. "No. It's Luna lost in Lunaland. A hurricane could hit and she'd still be lost." Luna stopped chattering and threw Miriam another of her famed glares.

"Never mind that hurricane! Let Miriam talk and Luna shall listen." Niobe chuckled.

The trio of girls boarded one of the shuttle buses headed into the city of Magix. Miriam would gaze outside throughout this ride and note the extreme flooding conditions of the forests surrounding the winding road. Her worries about the evil threatening the magical universe then resurfaced, but she didn't stop thinking about Oritel.

They arrived in the city of Magix, the ethnical hub of the magical universe. Miriam saw many different people from many different realms on the streets, even with the nonstop rain. Beautiful skyscrapers rose up high and mystical shops lined the commercial streets. Parks and courtyards filled with trees and flowers gave the bustling city a more "one with nature" look.

"The city of Magix!" Niobe breathed.

Miriam gave a nod, agreeing with Niobe's amazement. "The largest city of magical exchange in the universe." Miriam said, quoting a fact she'd learned from a book about Magix.

"Ooh! A sale!" Luna squealed, and Miriam and Niobe were tore out of their awe moment to only get dragged over to a dress shop. They followed the excited Luna into the shop. Miriam then felt Luna's excitement as she stared at the beautiful dresses in the shop.

"Good morning ladies and welcome to the _Elegance_ gown shop! May I help you find anything?" A store clerk asked them.

"No thank-you!" Luna replied sweetly and turned to her friends standing behind her. "Ladies! I've died and gone to shopper's heaven!" With that said she rushed off toward a rack of clothes.

"I've never seen her so happy." Niobe commented. Miriam nodded. Luna was extremely excited for the Homecoming dance. Correction: Luna was excited for Radius being at the Homecoming dance.

And so the girls began their process of dress searching. Miriam pushed her way through countless dresses, trying to find a decent one that she could wear. She heard a cry from Luna and whipped around worriedly.

"This is it! I've found it!" Luna spun around in a beautiful pale blue, sleeveless gown that had silvery, sequined patterns at the neckline and the hem, with a white shawl draped over her arms. She looked absolutely gorgeous in the dress, like some sort of moon goddess.

Miriam clapped. "It's lovely!" Miriam gave Luna a coy smile. "I'm sure Radius will fall head over heels for you in that dress."

Luna flashed her own beautiful smile. "You think? Well of course he would. I do have impeccable taste in gowns! I absolutely love this dress though!"

"Alright, alright! We catch you drift! Now go by the darn thing!" Niobe ordered. "Then you can stop worrying about yourself and give Miriam a hand!" Luna hurried to the clerk to buy her dress and Niobe turned to Miriam. "Jeesh."

Miriam laughed. "Any luck?"

"No. Luna was practically breathing down my neck and had a comment for every dang dress I pulled out! No Niobe! That dress is so last season. No Niobe! That dress will be too long for you and you'll trip on the dance floor. No Niobe! That dress will make your butt look fat." Niobe stopped and looked at Miriam annoyed. "I nearly attacked her for that one."

Miriam laughed harder. "Wow. She's really worried about what you'll wear."

"I'd be okay if she worried about you for ten minutes." Niobe grumbled.

Miriam looked at her. "Oh no. She can stay with you."

The two girls fell quiet as Luna returned dressed in her normal clothes carrying a shopping bag. "Great! I'm done! Now let's make you two actually look like you're elegant!"

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Niobe's eyes narrowed.

"Nothing. Nothing." Luna held her hands up in retreat then was distracted by something on a rack a few feet from them. "Oooh! Niobe! I see your dress!" Luna made a beeline for the rack and snatched a hanger. She turned to them and held it up for Niobe to see.

Niobe rolled her eyes. "Heck no."

"Heck yeah! Here go try it on and show it to us!" Luna shoved the dress in Niobe's arms and pushed her in the direction of the dressing room, with Niobe complaining the whole way. Miriam just turned back to the rack she'd been searching and sorted her way through the gowns. She sensed a presence at her shoulder and saw Luna next to her.

"Oh no honey! Come over to this rack! It has a whole array of green gowns that will definitely bring out those big beautiful green eyes!" Miriam was set before a rack filled with exquisite green dresses. She sighed and began digging through them. Sometimes it was just easier to just go with Luna's advice rather than fight it. When it came to clothes, Miriam knew, Luna was typically right.

"Wow." Miriam heard Niobe gasp behind her. Miriam turned and saw Niobe standing before a mirror in a flowing dark violet dress. The back of the dress fell to the floor but the front was higher, allowing Niobe's feet to show. The top of the gown was halter styled, allowing Niobe to bare her arms. A darker sash wrapped about her waist accentuated her figure perfectly. "It looks good on me." Niobe sighed. "You win Luna. I'm getting the dress."

"Of course! Luna is never wrong!" Luna stated, purposely talking in the third person. She turned to Miriam. "Miriam's turn!" But Miriam's turn wouldn't come.

There was a loud crash and shards of window glass scattered over the floor of the _Elegance _gown shop. Miriam tackled Luna and dragged her to the ground as energy blasts flew over their head. Screaming could be heard outside the shop. Miriam looked up and saw people running and scattering through the streets. "What's happening!" Miriam gasped.

"Lets go ladies!" Luna cried out and threw her arms into the air. "Go Winx!" Immediately Luna's normal clothes shimmered and morphed into a short pale blue skirt and figure-clinging sweater. Simple pale yellow wings sprouted from her back and a cute pair of heels appeared on her feet to match her wings. She flew out the broken window of the shop.

Miriam felt her own clothes change as she willed her Winx on. Her leggings and green sweatshirt were replaced with a short strapless green dress and leggings that ended thigh length. A pair of lighter green wedge heels adorned her feet and similarly colored wings appeared on her back. She flew out after Luna and surveyed the disaster occurring on the streets of Magix.

"What are those things?" Niobe asked. She too had transformed into her Winx, which consisted of lavender shorts and tank and lighter green knee high boots. She pointed down into the streets where they saw nasty bug-like creatures terrorizing the people.

"Eeew! Bugs!" Luna shrieked.

"Those are like the things that attacked my mansion!" Miriam exclaimed. "They must be the evil's soldiers!"

"They're already attacking Magix? Then what about the rest of the realms?" Niobe asked worriedly. "Is Tides okay?"

"Who knows? Right now we need to do some exterminating!" Luna flew in at a few of the creatures. "Lunar sweep!" Luna cried as she waved her arms in a sweeping motion before her. Several of the creatures went flying. One lunged straight for Luna.

"No way!" Niobe aimed her hands at the creature. "Bubble slap!" Bubbles smacked into the creature and it fell to the ground.

Luna flew up next to Niobe. "Thanks! That was close!" Luna said.

"No problem. How do we take these things out Miriam? You said they attacked your mansion back on Sparks." Niobe directed the question at Miriam.

Miriam thought back to the battle she helped her parents and servants fight. "I'm not too sure. We only held them off until Sparks soldiers came. I didn't really know how to use my powers then." Miriam confessed.

"Well there's always the experimental way to do this." Luna flew toward another group of the creatures and began to attack them. Niobe looked at Miriam, then went off to follow Luna's lead.

Miriam herself flew over to help some young children being attacked by the nasty bug creatures. She distracted the creature and led it away from the children. "Come on you harmless butterfly!" Miriam taunted the bug. It wasn't a professional taunt, but it seemed to work. It hissed at her and tried to stick her with its pincers. She threw her hands forward and willed her fire to go forth. "Fire blast!" The creature cried out and curled up in a ball on the ground.

"Good work." Miriam spun around and saw Oritel, with his unruly dark brown hair matted and wet, standing and observing her with his dark brown eyes. "I was coming to help you, but I guess you're a pretty independent fighter."

"That I am." Miriam said cautiously. She noted there were many Specialists in the streets of Magix fighting off the bug horde and guiding evacuees. "I see the cavalry has finally arrived."

" That we have. And good thing too. The Magix defenses are all gone to help with the universal war efforts." Oritel turned and sliced through a bug creature behind him. He turned and looked back at Miriam. "Miriam. I really need to talk to you about something." Oritel ducked as a bug shot some type of acid at him. He ran at it and swung his sword. The bug fell.

"Is now really the time?" Miriam asked as she threw several well-aimed blasts at a group of advancing creatures. "I mean, we are currently fighting off an army of bug things!" Miriam looked at Oritel oddly. What in the universe did he want to talk about? Especially in a time like this? A voice began to shout and Miriam's attention was drawn away from fighting. High up above the city, a woman was yelling in triumph.

"Flee! Magix citizens! Flee before my mistresses! They've claimed the star city of the magical universe! There is absolutely nothing you can do! My mistresses will rule all!" The woman screeched and laughed maniacally. "Mandragora has done it!"

"Ugh! Her attire is hideous!" Luna exclaimed in disgust. Miriam angrily flew up toward the woman a blast ready in her hand. Whoever this woman was, she had to go down.

"You can't stop me or my mistresses!" The woman threw a blast down at Miriam and Miriam was hit. Miriam felt her wings stop fluttering as the shock of getting hit sank in. And then she was falling. She saw the woman fly off cackling evilly.

"Miriam!" Luna flew fast toward her, but she wasn't going to be fast enough. Miriam closed her eyes tightly, prepared to hit the pavement of Magix, to feel the pain of her bones cracking and skin breaking, to feel the hard force of the solid ground. But she hit something else instead.

"Ooof!" Miriam smacked into Oritel's arms and the two of them hit the ground. She was on top of him and he looked up at her. "Are you okay?" Oritel asked her. Miriam nodded. "Can you get off me?"

"Oh!" Miriam hurried off him and helped pull him to his feet. Blood was rushing into her cheeks and Miriam was certain she was fiercely blushing. She could feel some bruising, but that was better than broken bones. "Thank-you."

"No problem." Oritel picked his sword up off the ground and looked back toward the rest of Magix. "We're going to have to retreat." Oritel growled angrily. Miriam followed his gaze and felt failure overcome all her embarrassment at the sight.

All of Magix was in ruin and the cries and shouts of people could be heard. Fires and smoke could be seen in the skies and bug creatures were everywhere, on everything. Crawling on buildings, tearing apart everything, breaking window and doors, terrorizing people. Miriam bit her lip. They'd failed to hold Magix.

"Magix is lost." Oritel said quietly.


	7. Chapter 6: Hunting

**Chapter Six - Hunting**

Oritel turned to the group of first year Specialists he'd been ordered to lead. "Pull back to Red Fountain immediately! We've evacuated all the citizens! Pull back now!" Oritel heard his orders being passed on throughout the ranks and looked at Miriam. "We'll get your girls back to Alfea, but we'll have to hurry. I'm afraid the city of Magix was just the first step."

Miriam nodded. "Yes. I'll go gather Niobe and Luna and we'll meet you at the edge of the city." Oritel watched her fly off. He'd have to tell her about the feeling later. Right now he had to make sure he got his squadron out of the city.

"I can't believe we've lost Magix!" Radius said angrily. Oritel shook his head and started running. He'd turn back every once in a while to make sure all his squadron was following and none were left behind. Oritel would also stop to clear their path of bug creatures. During this Erendor and Teredor were trying to figure out the enemy.

"What I don't understand is why Magix would be attacked. It's of no threat! And who was that woman?" Erendor cursed. "I've never seen such a creature, nor have I felt such power. It's not a good sign Oritel."

"It just doesn't make sense." Teredor muttered. He caught Oritel's gaze. "Where are the Alfea girls? Is Niobe okay?" Worry filled his tone.

"Miriam said she was going to find Niobe and Luna, then meet us on the outskirts of Magix. I wouldn't worry too much Teredor." Oritel gave his friend a small, reassuring smile. "The girls seemed quite capable of taking care of themselves. I'm sure they'll be fine."

Erendor wasn't so worried about the girls. He was still grumbling about the unusual enemy they'd lost Magix to. "Oritel. It's going to bother me! Why attack Magix? Why would they not continue their bombardment of Solaria, Tides, Eraklyon, Sparks, and other major realms?"

"Perhaps they've already defeated the major realms." Radius said bitterly.

"Nonsense. We would've heard something." Teredor said. "Unless they killed everybody."

"Which would be impossible considering there are millions in those realms. They couldn't track down every single person and kill them." Erendor pointed out. "Besides, Eraklyon wouldn't fall so easily." Erendor added stubbornly.

"Neither would Solaria!" Radius said proudly.

"If the realms hadn't fallen…" Teredor said quietly, "then why still remains a mystery."

The group ceased their discussion to continue their flee of Magix. Oritel observed Magix's destruction as they ran. He noted the bugs would break in to buildings, whether they went through windows, doors, or holes in the walls. But then they would abandon the buildings altogether after they'd ransacked them. Their actions were methodical and organized.

"They're looking for something." Oritel said to himself. He grabbed Radius and Erendor and pulled them to a stop. Teredor stopped automatically and looked at him funny. "They're looking for something!" Oritel repeated.

"What do you mean?" Radius asked.

"They're destruction is overly organized! The go into buildings and come out. They're looking for something." Oritel pointed down the street. The others looked that direction and saw a horde of bugs breaking into a building. They broke in, remained within for a short period, then exited and moved on to another building.

"He's right." Teredor said.

"But the bugs aren't too smart are they? I mean, they're searching houses and small businesses. If they were searching for something of value wouldn't they be looking in a museum or a bank? Maybe even mansions or palaces? But apartments and stores?" Erendor said with confusion.

"He's right." Teredor said again.

"Let's keep moving. We'll need to take this information to Saladin." Oritel urged. The guys all agreed and they continued fleeing.

Eventually they made their way to the outskirts of town. There they met up with a number of other groups of Specialists who'd gathered many refugees. Those groups went on ahead to evacuate the city. But Miriam and her friends weren't there as planned.

"Oritel." Teredor looked back at the city.

"I know Teredor." Oritel looked about and spotted one of the senior Specialists. "Jake!" Oritel ran over. "Will you take my group? We're missing some people."

Jake frowned at him. "Shouldn't we send one of the experienced Specialists in Oritel? You're a first year." Jake looked at a group of other seniors. "I could get Bradley on it…"

"I can handle this. They're probably close and we can catch up with you." Oritel said stubbornly. If there was one thing Oritel hated it was asking for help, or even receiving it for that matter.

Jake sighed. "Okay. I'll take your group. And you better catch us at halfway Oritel. If not I'll send Bradley in after you."

Oritel nodded. "You do that. But I'll guarantee we'll meet up with you." He turned to his buddies who all nodded in agreement. The group was heading back into the city.

"Where could they be?" Teredor asked anxiously.

"I told you, Miriam said she was going back to find Niobe and Luna. She told me that she'd meet up with us. Something must've happened." Oritel said.

"You don't think that hideous woman happened, do you?" Erendor asked.

"I hope Niobe will be okay." Teredor said softly.

"Cool it Teredor. She'll be fine. You hardly know the girl. And yet you're worrying over her like the two of you are husband and wife already." Oritel glanced away from the street to look at Teredor. "You can fall in love with her just like that?"

"You wouldn't understand Oritel. We talked some and we had many things in common. But we also had an understanding of some sort. She understood me." Teredor frowned. "I really wanted to get to know her better, too."

"We'll find them Teredor. If anything, Radius' girlfriend probably stopped to gape at a cute pair of shoes." Erendor assured Teredor. Radius tried to protest. "Oh. Don't start Radius. We all know you and Luna are dating. And we all know she'd doom the universe for shoes."

"Alright Erendor. You're being unfair." Oritel warned. He smiled then. "Although…" Oritel grunted as Radius punched him in the arm.

"Will you guys knock it off!" Teredor snapped. "Oritel. Where was the last place you saw Miriam?"

"Commercial Street. Near that one park there. It's right over there." Oritel pointed where he and Miriam last communicated.

"Well, she's obviously not there now." Erendor said.

"Thank-you Einstein." Radius said sarcastically.

"Look!" Oritel pointed to the eastern portion of Magix. A flash of light went off then subsided. They saw fire rise up, then disappear. "They're battling something. Let's go."

The boys hurried toward the source of the light show. Along the way, Oritel noted there was an increase in monster bugs. They eventually ran into a thick siege of bugs blocking their path.

"Crap." Radius said.

The bugs attacked them and the Specialists fell to action. Oritel had his sword drawn in seconds and was slicing his way through furiously. He soon found himself back to back with Erendor. He'd lost track of Radius and Teredor.

"What's with these things! Why are there so many of them!" Erendor shouted. He stabbed out and injured one of the attackers.

"I think that woman is nearby. These must be like her bodyguards or something." Oritel answered.

"Huh. That could be why these are the biggest and toughest of the bugs in the city." Erendor said.

"Where are Teredor and Radius?" Oritel yelled.

"Don't know." Erendor dodged another creature's attempt.

Oritel got in close and stabbed into the bug's abdomen. The bug hissed and folded in on itself. He spotted Teredor and Radius fighting their way through the bugs. "I see them." Oritel weaved his way through the horde. He stabbed a bug before it hurt Radius.

"Thanks." Radius said.

"No problem." Oritel replied.

"Moon beam!" A bunch of demons went flying and Luna landed next to the Specialists. "Hello boys."

"Luna. Where are Miriam and Niobe?" Radius asked.

"Niobe is up there. But Miriam…" Luna bit her lip, "that woman attacked her and the two of them are battling further in. That woman seriously hunted Miriam down!"

"Hunted Miriam down." Oritel repeated. There was an explosion and something hit the ground.

"Miriam!" Luna shrieked.

Oritel rushed to Miriam's side. "Miriam? Miriam? Can you hear me?"


	8. Chapter 7: Fears Become Reality

**Chapter Seven - Fears Become Reality**

"Miriam? Miriam? Can you hear me?"

Miriam heard the voice calling to her, but she couldn't identify who it was. All she did know was she had hit the ground hard and everything in her was aching right now. She really didn't want to open up her eyes for the fear of what might be happening.

That crazy woman had attacked her. Out of no where. She, Luna, and Niobe had been rushing out of the city when Mandragora attacked Miriam head on with no warning. She was vicious and it was everything Miriam could do to keep the woman from killing her. During all this fighting only one question had popped into Miriam's head: why? Why Miriam? What had she done to anger the evil so badly?

Miriam felt her body being lifted and held in somebody's arms. She was being lifted by a boy. Luna and Niobe didn't have much for upper body strength. Her head was against the boy's chest, his heart was beating fast like the wings of a great dragon. The boy was scared.

"Give me the girl!" Mandragora's voice snapped through Miriam's mind.

"You won't get her so long as I'm here to stand between you and your damn mistresses." Though his heart beat madly, the boy was strong in response to the wicked creature. The voice became more familiar to Miriam. Her mind fought to place it.

"You dare to desecrate my mistresses! I will destroy you!" Mandragora screeched.

"Back away from my students!" Miriam heard a new voice. There were more sounds, like those that come with a magic duel.

"Miss Faragonda! Look out!" Luna cried out.

"Go Miss F! Go!" Niobe cheered.

Miriam struggled, but she finally opened her eyes. She finally knew who it was who'd been holding her. "Oritel?"

Oritel looked down at her. "Miriam! Are you okay?"

Miriam muttered something like a yes and struggled until Oritel set her down on the ground. Miriam blinked then redirected her gaze toward the fighting scene being played out. Miss Faragonda and Mandragora were locked in a harsh battle of magics, countering each other with powerful spells.

"My mistresses want her dead, and dead she will be!" Mandragora shouted at one of her bugs and the bug rushed at Oritel and Miriam. Oritel tried to take out his sword, but was prevented from doing so by a second bug that attacked him from behind. The bug smashed Oritel into the pavement using its front legs.

"Get off of him!" Miriam shouted and threw her hands into the air. "Dragon blast!" A blast appeared in her hands and she directed it at the bug attacking Oritel. The bug hissed as it was thrown back away from Oritel. Oritel scrambled to his feet and hurried to Miriam's side. The two of them fell back-to-back as more monster bugs surrounded them.

"You're from Sparks?" Oritel asked Miriam.

"Does it matter?" Miriam shot back as she threw another blast at a daring bug.

"A bit." Oritel stabbed a bug. Miriam glanced at him then. Why would he care about her being from Sparks? She was about to make some snide comment back when she heard Mandragora screech in anger.

"No! The boy! They've met! Noo!" Mandragora was shot down by Faragonda.

"Quickly now students! You must all get together so I can portal all of us out of Magix!" Faragonda called out to the group of young people.

"I must kill them both. Before events take place, they both must die!" Mandragora growled and jumped at Miriam and Oritel. Oritel tackled Miriam out of the way and the two of them went rolling. "You won't live to see another day!"

"Be gone foul witch!" Faragonda threw another magic attack at Mandragora. Miriam could only stare and watch the battle enfold, but Oritel was unaffected by the powerful battle before them. He pulled on Miriam's arm and dragged her through the bug hordes toward their friends.

"Miriam! Stop fighting me!" Oritel shook her and Miriam snapped out of her awe. She nodded and they met up with the group of fighting fairies and Specialists.

"Miriam!" Luna hugged her fiercely. "You're okay! Don't you ever go scare me like that again! That crazy lady just attacked you, then me and Niobe were ambushed by icky bugs!" Luna shivered, emphasizing her distaste for bugs.

"Oritel! You're a crazy knuckle-headed ogre turd!" Erendor grunted. Miriam felt herself giggle at the comment.

"Great that you care, Erendor." Oritel muttered.

"Are you students ready?" Faragonda landed among the group, her fairy wings fluttering. "Niobe. Throw up a shield to surround the group. We don't want and extra travelers."

Niobe threw her hands up. "Morphix shield!" A bubble of water-like material rose up around the group.

"Excellent." Faragonda closed her eyes tightly and began to wave her hands about her. "Magia Portallis!"

There was a rush of air and the cityscape of Magix disappeared. Miriam was falling. She felt time and space around her being manipulated and adjusted. She heard Luna screaming, Erendor yelling curses, Niobe and Teredor shouting at one another. Radius was trying to calm Luna down. But she did not hear Oritel. Instead she felt him, as his hand slipped into her hand and pulled her to him. Miriam did not push him away, she held on to him, comforted by him.

"Incoming!" Faragonda cried out.

Miriam's feet hit the ground and she leaned hard into Oritel. But he supported the both of them and they regained their balance quickly. She heard other thuds and saw the others all land. Luna was still screaming, while Radius was dancing in front of her in attempt to gain her attention and make her stop. Teredor was being a gentleman and helping Niobe to her feet. Erendor was rubbing his backside.

"Well. That went well." Faragonda said, dusting herself off. "Oh! Come now! Stop it Miss Luna! We're on solid ground now you know!"

"We are?" Luna stopped screaming and fainted. Radius caught her and supported her limp body.

"She'll be fine, Radius." Miriam said.

"Will you two be okay? You're clutching one another rather close." Erendor snickered.

Miriam noticed she was still holding on to Oritel and she pulled away quickly. She could feel the blood rushing into her cheeks. Oritel straightened out and coughed, obviously just as embarrassed. Niobe and Teredor just gave the two of them knowing smiles. Miriam ignored them and redirected the attention to Miss Faragonda. "How were you able to find us?"

"Oh, that was simple. I wasn't trying to find you." Miss Faragonda gazed with amusement at Miriam and Oritel. "I was actually looking for Mandragora. I heard she was attacking Magix and I decided I'd try to stop her. She went to Cloud Tower with a friend of mine."

"Oh. But…do you know what she was going on about?" Miriam asked. "Why did she attack me?"

Faragonda frowned. "That I do not know. I don't even know who these mistresses she keeps going on about are. Mandragora is troubled that she didn't kill you though. I believe she fears them as much as she reveres them."

"That woman was a total basket-case!" Luna moaned. Miriam rolled her eyes. "I mean seriously? I hope that dress I purchased isn't totally ruined!"

"Luna! You're such a dolt! Honestly, we just lost the city of Magix and all you're worried about is that dress!" Niobe said exasperatedly.

"I'm worried about that, too! That means that one of your realms fell or something." Luna feigned interest. "The Western Moon of Solaria is probably still fighting off the evil."

"We need to get you students back to your schools." Miss Faragonda said, interrupting the exchange. "And the information on Mandragora and Magix needs to get out to parents. Some may want their children taken away from the war efforts." Faragonda began leading them to the schools.

"Great. More reason for my parents to move me around." Oritel muttered angrily.

Miriam glanced at him. "So your parents made you leave your realm too?"

"Yeah." Oritel answered. There was silence between them until Oritel spoke again. "Miriam. There's something I wanted to tell you about earlier. It's really going to sound weird after what's already happened, but do you remember asking me if we've met before?"

Miriam looked at him. The idea that she'd known him before was all she'd really thought about since that trip to Black Mud Swamp. "Yes. I remember." Miriam replied slowly.

"Well. I lied to you when I said I didn't remember you. I do remember you. I think we have met before." Oritel admitted.

Miriam looked at Oritel. "Oh. I thought I'd lost it. Why didn't you just tell me that before?"

Oritel laughed. "It'd seem weird. I thought that I'd freak you out or something."

Miriam nodded, a smile on her face. That definitely would have freaked her out then. But with what just happened…it wasn't too odd. She now had a crazy with woman with a bug army that wanted her dead for unknown reasons. "Thank-you for…not giving me up to that woman."

"You're welcome, I guess. I couldn't let that woman kill you." Oritel shrugged.

"She freaked out about me meeting some boy." Miriam remembered Mandragora screeching. "Do you think she meant you?" Miriam asked Oritel.

"Maybe. I don't understand how your meeting someone can affect evil's campaign." Oritel said. Oritel stopped walking and stared straight ahead of them.

Miriam stopped walking too then. "Oritel? What's wrong?" Miriam followed Oritel's gaze and gasped. "Oh no."

"They're making their way to the schools." Oritel muttered.


	9. Chapter 8: Duties

**Chapter Eight - Duties**

"Oritel. You're to travel to your Uncle Nicholai's summer home in the Isis realm. You'll stay with them until this whole evil mess is taken care of."

Oritel clenched his teeth angrily as he listened to his father's instructions. "Father…I feel that I should stay here on Magix and help protect the Red Fountain school."

"Oritel. You know I can't agree with that. You're the last heir to the Sparks throne. Your life is worth more than your pride or honor. Only you can continue our royal bloodline." His father continued his rant on the importance of protecting the royal bloodline.

His grip on the phone tightened as his father went on. Finally he interrupted his father. "No, Father." Oritel snapped, then his voice softened. "I refuse to leave my comrades in this mess. I'm staying. And nothing you say about the royal bloodline will stop me from staying." He was about to hang up the phone when his father's voice stopped him. He rolled his eyes and brought the phone back to his ear. "What, Father?"

"You're being foolish. Your mother and I have already made our decision on your arranged marriage. And here you've decided to give up on everything just to protect the worthless lives of a few royal men below you. Oritel. Think this through." Oritel's father plead.

"I have though it through, Father. They're not worthless. If anything, my birthright is." Oritel slammed the phone back on its hook.

"Jeese. Lose your respect for the phone?" Erendor asked.

"No for my father. He wanted me to flee to my uncle's home. Yeah right. I refuse to leave where I'm needed just because of my birth right." Oritel grumbled. "My father also just told me he and my mother have decided to set me up with an arranged marriage."

"Oooh. Lucky you." Erendor said. "Weren't you complaining about those to Teredor just days ago?"

"Yeah." Oritel plopped down next to Erendor on the couch. "I never thought my parents would go through with it. Sure they suggested the idea a few times to me, but I always thought my mother would let me make my own choices. I guess my thinking was wrong." Oritel ran his hand through his hair. His life, which seemed so free and open to interpretation days earlier, was now an organized chaos he had no control over. He had no choice in the matter and he knew there was no point in arguing with his father about the marriage.

"There's no way out of it for you?" Erendor asked. Oritel shook his head. "Well, I guess you could die." Erendor tried joking, but he sobered up when he saw Oritel didn't respond. "Oritel. I'm sure everything will work out for the best. You'll see. Maybe she'll be some trophy wife."

"Would my father put me in an arranged marriage with an ugly girl? I'm not trying to sound callous or anything…" Oritel hurriedly added.

"No. Guess not. But the girl would have to be very important to her realm. They wouldn't just marry the prince of Sparks off to some random girl. Parents always choose them for their worth." Erendor frowned. "Thank God I'll get to pick my girl."

"And I was just getting into some of the girls at Alfea too." Oritel said with a hint of sarcasm into his tone.

"Especially Miriam." Erendor said nonchalantly.

"What?" Oritel spluttered.

"Oh, don't play dumb. Teredor, Radius, and I all saw how worried you were about her when Magix fell and she faced off that evil Mandragora chick. _Miriam? Miriam? Can you hear me? Oh Miriam?_" Erendor mocked Oritel. "Heck, even Luna saw you two were totally into one another and she's an oblivious blonde bimbo."

"First off, you really need to lay off Luna. You're just picking on her constantly. Second, I found out she's from Sparks. Erendor, she's one of my people. So I've got to care." Oritel said, though he knew it was a lame excuse. The truth was that Miriam fascinated him, and he'd wanted to ask her out.

"Sure. You didn't know that until that stupid battle in Magix. And before you were just being overly friendly. Emphasis on the overly." Erendor snickered. "But whatever. You just keep on believing whatever it is you want to believe. When the truth hits you, it'll hit you hard."

Oritel just sighed and stood up. He couldn't take much more of Erendor that day. The guy might've been his best friend and all, but it didn't mean he could put up with all his attitude. Oritel left Erendor sitting in the dorm room and made his way to the outdoor covered walkways of the Red Fountain school.

Of course the rain was falling. There was a period where the precipitation had ceased, but it was short lived. The rain returned, dampening the spirits of all the Red Fountain students and faculty once more. Magic had been used to control flood conditions, and Oritel wondered how long this magic would last. Oritel listened to the clap of the water as he trudged through small puddles and headed toward the Red Fountain stables.

"Maybe I'll go see the dragons." Oritel thought aloud to himself. He loved to see the dragons. The large majestic beasts were inspiring to him and reminded him often of the legends and stories of Sparks and the dragon island of Pyros.

He entered the stables and was pleased to note they were empty of human life. Just Oritel and the creatures. He walked up to one of the stalls containing horses and eyed the creature. It was calm, despite the obvious tensions that pervaded the air after Magix fell. He walked past the horse stalls and made his way over to the larger stalls containing the dragons. His breath caught as he observed the glorious creature. The dragon stared at him, then tilted its head in curiosity.

"How I wish I could spread wings and fly like you." Oritel said softly. The dragon huffed and lowered its head to Oritel's eye level. Oritel reached out and lay a hand on the creature's head.

"Flying is wonderful." A voice answered quietly from behind him. Oritel turned and saw Miriam standing at the stall entrance, watching him and eyeing the dragon.

"Hello." Oritel greeted Miriam, his nerves jumping. "You travel here with Luna or Niobe so they could meet up with their boys?"

"Yes. Miriam walked over and stood next to Oritel. She too reached out to pet the creature. "This may be one of our last safe trips before the armies arrive, so I thought I'd better come over."

"Oh. So you came to see someone in particular." Oritel stated. He wanted to kick himself for that brilliant statement.

Miriam gazed at him, her green eyes unblinking. "Actually yes. I did." She looked away and said nothing else. Oritel fell quiet and just leaned against the stall wall, his eyes fixed on the girl before him. She was amazing. Beautiful. Fierce, but gentle. All in all good. Oritel was in love with this girl.

Oritel cleared his throat and gathered his courage. "Miriam. I've been meaning to ask you something."

Miriam looked at Oritel and smiled brightly. "In Magix you wished to tell me something. And now you have something to ask me? You have much to discuss with me don't you?"

Oritel struggled to uphold his courage. "Yeah, well. You are quite a girl to talk with."

Miriam's smile deepened. "Well, ask away."

Oritel took a deep breath and walked up to Miriam. "Miriam. I think you're amazing. And, when the time isn't quite so dire, I'd like to ask you out sometime."

She looked up at Oritel then. "I'd like that Oritel. A lot." Miriam looked away from him blushing fiercely. "I mean…I don't typically fall for boys so easily. But you're no ordinary guy." Miriam's voice softened as her gaze returned to Oritel. "You're good and honorable. Erendor told us about your choice between running from war and standing with your comrades. You chose them over your own safety. That's admirable, inspiring."

Oritel leaned down and kissed Miriam gently. He felt Miriam's arms wrap gently around his neck and he pulled her close. His heart was pounding as he pulled gently away from the kiss and looked at Miriam. "This is fast."

"Yeah." Miriam pulled out of the embrace and Oritel just let her go. "But good." Miriam gave Oritel a shy smile. "I hope I'll see you after this is all over. I have to go."

"Miriam. Please be careful and avoid Mandragora. Please." Oritel gave Miriam a pleading look. "That woman is dangerous. And…well…I don't want you to get hurt." He admitted.

"I will. I really don't want to meet Mandragora ever again anyway." She grabbed his hand and squeezed. "Good-bye." And Miriam hurried out of the stables.

Oritel watched her leave, his pulse still crazy. Joy filled his thoughts and Oritel turned and looked at the dragon, who was watching him with a look of amusement. Oritel felt a grin on his face and restrained himself from jumping up and down. "She said yes." He said smugly to the creature. The dragon just snorted and focused its attention on lapping up water from its trough.

He was about to hurry off to tell Erendor or Radius when his thoughts darkened and his joy dissipated. The dragon sensed this change in atmosphere and glanced at Oritel uneasily. Oritel just put his head in his hand. "What about my arranged marriage?"


	10. Chapter 9: Mandragora's Attack On Alfea

**Chapter Nine - Mandragora's Attack On Alfea**

Mandragora's army attacked that night. Just after Miriam, Niobe, and Luna had returned from the Red Fountain school. And Alfea was unsuspecting.

Miriam had been sleeping when she heard the first thud. She scrambled out of her bed and rushed to the window of the dorm room. Luna came up behind her as she peered outside. "What is it?" Luna asked.

"Mandragora." Miriam gasped. She turned and went running from the room, passing many groggy students coming out of their own rooms.. Luna was on her heels, and soon Niobe had joined up with them at the head of the stair well leading down to the main floor. They descended the stairs quickly, and headed to the courtyard.

"What are we going to do? Those bugs are tough! There is no way we can take her whole army on!" Niobe exclaimed.

"Some will have gone to Red Fountain. Remember, Mandragora wants to kill some boy too, just because he met Miriam." Luna gave a small laugh. "Sounds like an angry parent kind of thing. Or an overprotective parent."

"But who? Miriam's met plenty of boys." Niobe pointed out.

"Oritel." Miriam answered.

Both Niobe and Luna looked at Miriam in surprise. "Oritel?" Luna repeated. "Why Oritel? He's not overly special or anything."

Miriam shrugged. "I've got a feeling okay. And, well, he's…he…I'm a bit closer to him than I am to the other boys I've met." Miriam felt heat in her cheeks and ducked her head down quickly.

"You mean…Miriam? Are you and Oritel an item?" Luna asked, intrigued by the turn in the conversation.

"No…well…not quite…Luna! We've got to protect Alfea! Focus!" Miriam snapped, irritated by Luna's delight. She pushed open the doors and they stumbled onto the battle scene. Faculty and students had gathered in organized groups to receive instruction for when the bugs broke through. Miriam, Luna, and Niobe quickly hurried over to a group of first years being led by the transformation professor, Wizgiz.

"Ladies. The first thing you need to focus on is not panicking. I know you haven't had any experience battling real battles with real villains that aren't controlled by some experienced faculty member and regulated by laws according to the Magical Education council…" A loud thud cut the leprechaun professor off. There was a huge crash and the protective barrier shattered, the pieces disappearing as they fell. Screams and battle cries filled Alfea then. Many of the older students transformed immediately into Winx and other more intricate transformations. The much younger students either stared or began screaming in terror.

"Transform now!" Headmistress Heatherue commanded. The shout echoed about the grounds, despite the cacophony of yells and roars. Many fairies over came their sudden fears and followed the order. Soon the courtyard was filled with fairies in glitzy, fashionable outfits and sparkling wings.

Miriam turned and nodded to her two friends. She then raised her fist and shouted. "Winx!" The natural motions of transformation came instinctively and Miriam's powers flowed through her, strengthening her. The exhaustion from being awoken early disappeared as the energy ran through her veins. Her pajamas were replaced with her fairy outfit and her wings. Immediately she fell to action, attacking Mandragora's army with ferocity. "Dragon flame!" Miriam hit a creature about to attack Miss Faragonda.

"Allow me to return the favor!" Miss Faragonda shouted, and she threw a blast at something behind Miriam. Miriam saw a bug behind her crumple.

"Thanks." Miriam called to Miss Faragonda. She scanned the mess before her in search of her friends. Instead she spotted Semara running from a monster. Miriam flew over and disposed of the creature. "Semara. If you aren't going to fight, get inside." Semara just threw Miriam an evil glare, but listened and hurried into the school.

"The creatures attacked much sooner than we thought." Miriam turned and saw Headmistress Heatherue make her way over, disposing of several bugs on her way. "I should've known evil has no respect."

Guilt overcame Miriam. Should she tell the headmistress that the bugs might have come in search of her? She was about to say something when she heard a familiar scream. "Luna!" Miriam was in the air in seconds, searching frantically for her friend. "Luna, I'm coming!" She spotted a glint of pale blue and flew over quickly. "Get off of her!" Miriam threw a blast that knocked the creature off her friend.

"Thanks." Luna said shakily. Miriam pulled the girl to her feet and supported her. "That thing caught me by surprise, that's all. I can fight…" Luna's words grew weak as she went on.

Miriam shook her head. "No, Luna. You've been hurt. I getting you to the school now." Miriam dragged Luna toward a nearby entrance, avoiding ongoing battles. She reached the doors after much effort and ushered Luna inside. "Stay here. Don't be stupid." Miriam left the weakened Luna and returned to the fight outside.

"Ahh!" Miriam jumped as she saw a fairy not too far from her get grabbed from the air and thrown from the air by a flying creature. Miriam felt her her jaw drop in horror as she saw this happen over and over with other unsuspecting fairies.

Niobe landed next to her. "Looks like we've no longer got the air advantage." she commented grimly. "Where's Luna?"

"I brought into the school. She was attacked and hurt." Miriam informed Niobe. She sprang back into the air and attacked some more creatures. " I don't know how much more of this I can take." Miriam confessed to Niobe. "My magic is draining quickly."

"I know! We haven't been conditioned to battle like this!" Niobe threw up a shield to protect Miriam from a bug's attempt. "But they have." Niobe pointed toward the older fairies with the more complex outfits.

"Well, yeah! They've been here longer." Miriam pointed out.

She was about to throw more magic at another creature when something slammed into her. Pain filled her head and body leaving her in a daze. She shook her head and fought the daze. Something had her and she was going higher and higher.

Niobe was trying to catch up to her. "Miriam! Oof!" Niobe was tackled out of the sky by a flying bug.

Miriam struggled. One of the flying creatures had her in its grasp, its claws digging into her waist. She yelped in pain. "Let go!" Miriam cried, releasing the energy she had built up for retaliation. The fire flowed then radiated from her, burning the creature. It roared in pain and dropped her. Miriam was left to fall. She fought to get her wings fluttering, but they didn't seem to listen. "Come on!" Miriam focused hard. The wings listened and Miriam was jerked upward.

"So you've finally shown yourself."

Miriam flinched as she heard the voice echo above the chaos. She turned and saw Mandragora. The sharp featured woman cackled at Miriam's look of horror. "You're afraid. That's good. You'll be easier to take down."

An indignant feeling gushed through Miriam and she clenched her fists. "I'm not afraid. And you won't take me down so easily.

Mandragora threw back her head and laughed again. "I love taking on the young. They think they know all. They are in reality foolish and immature. My mistresses will see that you fall, Miriam. If I don't stop you, they'll stop you. It's as simple as that."

"This is simple too." Miriam threw out her hands and a fiery burst of energy smacked into Mandragora.

"You insufferable brat!" Mandragora threw her own magic at Miriam. Miriam braced her self, but had no way of knowing how hard the magic would hit her. Her wings fluttered irregularly and Miriam fell several feet. "You dare to withstand my magic! You should just give in now! I'll leave your precious Alfea alone!"

"Back away from her!" Niobe shouted and tackled Mandragora.

"Niobe!" Miriam flew after them. The two hit the ground hard. Miriam landed and pulled Niobe away from Mandragora's clutches, dragging her back. The chaos had stopped and the bug creatures and fairies backed away from the three.

"You stupid girl!" Mandragora threw a magic attack.

Miriam struggled, but was able to throw up a shield just in time. Niobe was limp in her arms. "You will pay!" Miriam screamed. She placed Niobe on the ground gently and looked angrily at Mandragora. The embers of her exhausted powers rekindled with her anger. Flames appeared in her hands and she threw them.

Mandragora dodged the attacks and tossed her own at Miriam. "You're going have to better than that little Miriam."

Miriam flew up to avoid the lazy attacks Mandragora was mocking her with. She then flew straight at Mandragora clawing her flames at the woman. Mandragora continued to expertly dodge the attacks, all the while filling the air with cruel comments and annoying laughs. Miriam's anger built up more with each unsuccessful attempt she made to hurt the crazed woman.

"Oh I'm paying." Mandragora said sarcastically. "If I hadn't been interrupted back in Magix, you'd be dead. No doubt about it."

"Who are your mistresses? Are they the evil that threatens the universe?" Miriam shouted.

"You won't get to meet them. I'll kill you first. If you somehow get past me to actually meet them, you'll wish I'd killed you first!"

The fire in Miriam then became unbearable. "No. You will not kill me. Nor will you hurt Oritel!" Miriam let loose the unbearable flame within her, relieving the pressure it had put on her mind and body. The feverish anger left her and she heard Mandragora cry out in surprise and pain. And that was the last thing she heard and saw as she passed out from the overexertion and exhaustion.


	11. Chapter 10: Battling and A Mistake

**Chapter Ten- Battling and A Mistake**

Oritel jabbed and rolled to avoid a creature's counterattack. He immediately sprang to his feet and feigned a charge toward the creature's center. The bug fell for the feign and focused on protecting its center. But Oritel redirected his attack and stabbed the bug in side. The creature screamed in agony, and Oritel ended it's suffering with a swift coup de grace. He then turned to survey the battlefield before him.

The yells of the Specialists and the hisses of the creatures reverberated throughout the Red Fountain grounds. Many creatures lay dead in various places, but the living still greatly outnumbered that many. As far as Oritel could tell, they hadn't lost any Specialists yet. Many had been injured though, and they were mostly from Oritel's class. The older students toughed it out better and fought with more calculated blows and strategies.

"Keep moving Oritel!" Erendor shouted angrily. Oritel saw his friend take out a bug that was about to attack him. "Don't just stand there taking it all in! If you want to do that, snap a picture and take it in later! Get fighting!" Erendor stabbed a creature next to him and looked at Oritel angrily as if to emphasize a point.

"Yeah, yeah." Oritel muttered and deflected a creature's blow. "Why would they attack here? Miriam went back to Alfea."

Radius disposed of his target. "Maybe they're trying to distract us so we can't go and help them."

"Like that makes sense." Erendor grumbled.

"Actually, it's a probable reason." Teredor stated. "Or else they're looking for something here at Red Fountain. Or maybe they think she's here."

"Then these things are even stupider than I thought." Erendor said. He dodged a bug's pinchers and sliced downward, severing the creatures limbs. "This is a Specialist school, not a fairy school."

"They could have spotted her here earlier. She came to visit with Niobe and Luna." Teredor ducked as a particularly tall bug swept its arm at his head. He took his sword and stabbed the bug right in the abdomen. It fell back screeching. "I couldn't just be a diplomatic king. No…I had to be a man of action!" Teredor muttered.

"Yeah. She said hello then just disappeared. What kind of visit is that? She seems stuck up." Erendor said.

"She's not stuck up!" Oritel snapped heatedly.

All three of his friends stared at him. "Okay…she's not stuck up." Erendor said slowly. A mischievous grin crossed his face. "You know, she did come back, and she looked rather flustered. Don't you think boys?"

"Yeah. Luna and Niobe thought she was sick or something so they had to leave. She was a bit red in the cheeks." Radius recalled. He looked confusedly at Erendor. "Why does it matter?"

Teredor's eyes got big and he looked at Oritel then. "No!"

"I'm thinking so. Oritel…where were you all the while the girls visited?" Erendor asked casually. He kicked a creature back, his amused gaze never leaving Oritel.

"In the stables seeing to the dragons." Oritel said hotly.

"Could've swore I saw Miriam go that direction when she left us." Erendor said.

Oritel turned from his friends and ran straight into the fighting. He didn't want to take any more crap from Erendor and he didn't feel like staying to see if Radius would ever catch on to what Erendor was getting at. Of course what Erendor was talking about was true, but the guy wouldn't stop bugging him after he admitted it.

Thinking about Miriam made Oritel think about his arranged marriage. What in the universe was he thinking when he asked Miriam out? How was he going to tell Miriam that they couldn't be together because of the marriage? Oritel felt like a hypocrite.

"Careful, Oritel!" Professor Harce called when Oritel stumbled after receiving a blow. Oritel fought his distracting thoughts and finished the creature off. "Is something wrong?" Professor Harce shouted.

"Other than Red Fountain being under attack from an army of oversized cockroaches, spiders, and other disgusting insects? No Professor." Oritel replied, trying to put a bit of humor in his words. His cover up worked, as the professor just laughed and continued his own battles with the bugs. "Just me being stupid." Oritel muttered to himself.

After a while Oritel began to ask himself why he asked Miriam out. Was it because he liked her? Was it because he had a feeling he knew her from somewhere else? Was it because she was drop-dead gorgeous? Was it in retaliation to his father's plans for an arranged marriage? All these questions haunted his mind, driving him to the edge. Eventually he did come up with an answer though. It was because when Oritel was with Miriam, it felt right. Everything felt right.

Oritel made himself a promise after all this thought. He was going to fight his father's wishes and be with Miriam. Maybe she'd be good for Sparks, maybe not. Anyhow, he felt she'd be good for him. And he hoped he'd be good for her…

But what about the other girl? Perhaps she'd been okay with the arranged marriage? Maybe she'd been looking forward to marrying Oritel? Hopefully for reasons other than his birthright. He didn't want to disappoint the other girl, anyhow.

After so much fighting, it looked as the Specialists had finally made some headway. Over half of the bug army had been defeated. The leftover bugs were pulling back some, and this brought up the students' morale greatly. Professor Harce brought together several small groups of fighters and had them attack with well-calculated strategies. These strategies were thought up by the Specialists themselves. "Consider it extra-credit!" Harce told the boys.

Soon enough the battle was won. The Specialists and the faculty began to celebrate the hard-fought win. But Oritel felt that something was off. When he suggested this to his friends, they all shrugged it off.

"Oritel! We've won a battle! I mean we just seriously fought all night and here you're worrying! Have a drink and give a toast man!" Erendor chugged his hero's brew. Radius and Teredor raised their glasses to one another and followed Erendor's lead.

Oritel shook his head and wandered outside into the torn up courtyards. Some bug bodies still lay scattered about the space. He skirted around them, all the while thinking numbers. "The number of bugs in Magix seemed so much larger than what attacked us today. Perhaps they sent more to Alfea? If that were true, then why aren't we sending them aid? We haven't heard anything from Alfea." Oritel pounded his fist angrily on the side of his leg. "Why doesn't this make any sense to me? Teredor would say it'd be logical to send more creatures to Alfea where Miriam is, but something still doesn't feel right."

"Hssss."

Oritel whipped around and saw one of the carcasses wasn't quite dead. He drew his sword and drove it through the creature, silencing it's horrid cry. He was about to make his way toward the dragon stables again when he saw a couple of bugs scurry off around a corner of the building. "Stragglers." Oritel muttered to himself, wiping the gore off his blade. He immediately took pursuit of the bugs.

The bugs were fast. Oritel had a hard time of keeping up while being stealthy at the same time. Often he made an audible noise and had to dive behind a tree or shrub in order to hide from the cautious creatures. Eventually the bugs went through a door at the back of the Red Fountain school and Oritel followed.

The hallway they'd entered appeared to be some kind of service hall where the janitorial staff and other workers sent to avoid student rushes. It was dark and the hall smelled musty. But Oritel ignored these sensations and continued to stalk the bugs anyway. He had to get rid of them to prevent infestation, or spying if the creatures were capable of such a skill. Finally the bugs reached the end of the hall and entered into a door. Oritel hesitated, then pulled out his sword before entering the room.

As soon as he entered the room Oritel knew he'd made a mistake. This room made his uneasy feeling increase exponentially and he turned to rush from the room. He was too late. All the energy he had was drained from him and a black void began to overcome his senses. He struggled to fight off the unconsciousness. But in the end the unconsciousness won, but not before he caught a glimpse of pale, gnarled hands grabbing him.


	12. Chapter 11: Planning a Rescue

_**Chapter 11 - Planning a Rescue**_

_The entire room was silent. Luna and Niobe were both looking worriedly at Miriam, but Miriam paid them no heed. She was lost in her own disbelief. "You're sure? Maybe he just went out for a patrol?" Miriam's eyes looked pleadingly up at Radius._

_After the fight of their lives, the boys came over to Alfea. But their overall demeanor wasn't one of celebration. Rather they came bearing bad news. And now they all stood in Miriam and Luna's dorm room._

_Radius shook his head. His fists were clenched. "We followed him down into the janitor halls. He was tracking a couple of stray bugs. Then…we saw them take him. One minute they were there and we were going to ambush them. The next they were gone." Radius' fist shook and he slammed it against the wall._

_Luna stood up and took the clenched fist into her hand. "You couldn't have done anything about it, Radius." She glanced toward Teredor. "You said they felt strong?"_

_Teredor nodded. "Yeah. I'm a non-magical being and I could feel the magic flowing from them. And it wasn't good magic either. It was malevolent and evil." Teredor shivered. Niobe placed a hand on his shoulder._

"_How are we going to rescue him." Miriam asked quietly. The people in the room turned and looked at her in surprise. "We need to save him. We have to." Miriam's eyes closed tightly as she felt the tears threaten._

"_Miriam. You aren't strong enough. You've been weakened a lot after defeating Mandragora. And we aren't strong enough to take these creatures of evil on." Luna shook her head. "No, Miriam. We have no choice but to let someone else handle this."_

"_No!" Miriam snapped angrily, the tears flowing freely now. "If it was Radius you'd move the moon yourself to save him Luna."_

_Luna turned pink. "Well, it wasn't Radius so I won't be going about moving moons from their rightful orbits any time soon." She cleared her throat and gazed at the floor. "I'm sure Miss Faragonda and that Professor Saladin will be capable of taking care of it." Luna added in attempt to reassure Miriam._

"_I feel like I have to go though." Miriam whispered. Then her gaze went to the one silent person in the room. Erendor stood leaning against the wall his arms crossed and his face hidden from them. He hadn't said a word during all the time they'd been at Alfea. But he finally spoke._

"_We have to. We owe that much to him." Erendor said quietly. He finally looked up and made eye contact with each person in the room, daring them to tell him no. "I froze. When we saw those creatures attacking and taking Oritel, I froze. And I know darn well that the two of you froze too." He threw looks toward Teredor and Radius. They looked down to avoid his gaze. "There's something about those creatures. I think it was their power. It was that overwhelming."_

"_If their powers were that strong on you, why go out in attempt to save Oritel then? We'll only run into them and fall under their spell too. And possibly die." Luna countered angrily. "Am I the only person thinking this through here? We don't have the firepower to take them out. Even if we found them what would we do?"_

"_We could lock them in a room with you and let you talk for an hour." Niobe said with a lack of emotion. She ignored the look Luna gave her and walked over to Miriam. She knelt before the despondent girl and took her hands in her own. "Whatever you decide Miriam, remember I'll go with you. You are not alone." She threw a meaningful look at Luna._

_Luna sighed. "You know I'd follow Miriam to the end of the universe! I'm just putting out all the possibilities so we don't go headlong into battle without a thought on outcome." Luna walked over and placed one of her hands over Niobe's and smiled at Miriam. "I'll help you. No matter what."_

_Miriam bit her lip and looked at the floor. She was tired. But Oritel was in danger. "How many of them were there?" she asked._

_Teredor's nose wrinkled as he struggled to remember. "Five maybe? I don't know. It was dark. They were dark. And old! They sounded like old people."_

"_Oh that's descriptive." Luna snorted. "They sound like old people!"_

"_Luna's right Teredor. Luna also sounds like an old person, but her attitude obviously screams two-year old. We have to go on something more concrete than that." Niobe threw Luna a glare._

"_I know! But…my memory…it's like fading quickly. I'm having a hard time remembering the details about them." Teredor said. He looked guiltily at the floor. "I should be able to remember it better than that." he muttered._

"_Yeah. You've got a better memory than I do!" Radius exclaimed._

_Niobe frowned. "Maybe those witches used some kind of memory hazing spell?"_

_Erendor nodded. "My memories are vague too. I only recall Oritel getting taken."_

"_Well, we know that Mandragora must have him. Those bugs he followed were stragglers of Mandragora's troops. They led him into a trap. She took him to get to me." Miriam looked at the group. "He and I…"_

"_Were obviously growing close." Luna gave Miriam a bright, knowing smile. "Yeah, we all knew. And we all saw it coming. You two have had eyes for one another since that day at Black Mud Swamp. No matter how hard you two worked to hide and deny it, it was obvious."_

_Miriam blushed. "Yes. Well, I shouldn't have gotten close to him. Now he's caught up in this mess big time."_

"_We'll get him out of it. We just have to focus and figure out where they'd take him." Niobe paced the room._

"_How would Saladin and Faragonda go about doing it?" Erendor asked. "They're well trained magic users. I'm sure they'll find him before we even think of where to find him."_

"_Are you saying we should follow Saladin and Faragonda as they search?" Miriam asked him. Her gaze was drawn to his eyes and he looked away. "They'd obviously see us following them. They are 'trained'."_

"_That and their search could take them all over the magical universe. We can't even portal." Niobe sighed. "I wish we got more training in before we had to take on super evils."_

_Miriam stood up then. The whole group gazed after her as she made her way over to the door. "Where are you going? Radius asked. Miriam said nothing as she opened the door and walked down the hallway. She heard footsteps behind her and felt Luna come up next to her, matching her gait._

"_Miriam?" Luna said Miriam's name softly. "What are we doing?"_

"_I'm going to Miss Faragonda and demanding that I go with her and Saladin on their search for Oritel." Miriam said simply._

"_What makes you think they'll take you with them?" Erendor asked._

"_Mandragora wants me. I'll need to be there if they want her to hand Oritel over." Miriam replied._

"_She wants you dead, Miriam!" Niobe exclaimed. "They won't take you with them if it could endanger your life!"_

_Miriam whipped around and stared at her friends. "Well I can't sit around and talk which is all we've done so far!" Frustration building up made her yell and the group stared at her in shock. _

"_Miriam calm down."_

_The group all turned and saw Miss Faragonda and a tall dark haired man walk up to them. "There is no need to worry. And as far as I know you won't be sitting around and talking. A few of you are going with us to save Oritel." Miss Faragonda looked curiously at Miriam._

"_You're just going to let us go with?" Luna stared. "Don't you think we're too weak or inexperienced, or something?"_

_The dark haired man laughed. "Far from it. We understand it was you who took on those creatures in Magix and Miriam sent Mandragora packing last night. And we've received information our best chances will be to take a few of you with us."_

"_And who will be going with you?" Niobe asked suspiciously. "You did say only a few are going with you."_

"_We're taking Miriam, Erendor, Radius, and you Niobe." Miss Faragonda answered._

"_What! What about me and Teredor! We can't just…" Luna was cut off as Miss Faragonda raised her hand for silence._

"_Headmistress Heatherue has another task for you here. An important one." The dark haired man added as Luna was about to protest even further. "She wanted us to send you and Teredor down to her office immediately. As for the rest of you, prepare yourselves. We're leaving tonight with as much discretion possible. Do not tell anybody."_

"_Yes Professor." Erendor stated. Miriam glanced back at the man. So this was Professor Saladin. The man was older than Miss Faragonda. He wore his dark hair long and donned wizard robes. He had an air of experience about him, like he'd faced many evils before._

"_Rest up." Saladin said, and he and Miss Faragonda went off walking together._

"_Better go and see the Headmistress." Luna grumbled. "If she has some stupid minor task that's supposed to make me feel useful, I'm not going to be happy." Miriam hugged Luna tightly, then. Luna hugged her back. "Sweetie. I'll be there faster than a moonbeam if you need me." Luna pulled back and smiled brightly at Miriam. "Alright? Now I'm off to talk to that old lady who runs this place. Ciao!" Luna and Teredor walked off down the hallway._

"_Two hours 'til sundown." Erendor said. "Well, if the sun were to shine. We'd better prepare ourselves."_

_Niobe looked at him then. "What do they mean by prepare ourselves?"_

_Erendor laughed then. "You can't be serious? Well us Red Fountain students usually do an inventory of weapons, eat some food, and dress appropriately for a mission. I don't think designer jeans and a pair of platform heels are appropriate."_

"_And you're an expert?" Niobe crossed her arms indignantly and turned from Erendor with a harrumph._

"_Hey! You asked!" Erendor pointed out. "I'll see you two in a couple of hours." Erendor walked away with Radius following. As they left Niobe turned to Miriam._

"_We'll get him Miriam. Okay?" She gave Miriam a reassuring smile before leaving Miriam to prepare herself for her very first mission on her own. Miriam took a deep breath and looked outside. The rain had subsided but the clouds still loomed angrily. It gave Miriam an eerie feeling. She shook it off and hurried back to her dorm to prepare herself._


	13. Chapter 12: Voices

**Chapter 12 - Voices**

The air was still and thick with fog. Rock formations jut up from the hard ground, hauntingly. An air of dread covered the entirety of the region. Oritel picked himself off the ground slowly. He rubbed the back of his neck in hopes of relieving the pain. No such luck. He looked around and horror spread through him. Where was he? What happened? Why did it happen?

"Your majesty." An eerie voice called from the shadowy fog surrounding him. Oritel whipped around, trying to pick out the source of the voice. Something rushed past him, cackling madly. Oritel pulled out his sword.

"I'm not afraid of you!" Oritel shouted. His mind was racing. What happened? Why couldn't he remember?

"So brave!" Another voice gave an irritating laugh. "Definitely the Oritel that was predicted to stop us."

"He won't stop us. He will be dead before he can do us any damage!" Another cackle. The piercing laugh made Oritel flinch. "I can't believe we were worried about you!"

And then there was a third voice. "Quiet! Don't be fools! We can't take any chances! If we screw this up we could our chance at ruling the future!"

Anger filled Oritel then. "Forget that! You won't rule! I'd die first!" Oritel shouted.

"And die you shall! But not yet. If we kill you too soon we won't get the power!" One voice retorted.

"Yes! The dragon's power! It must be ours!" The other voice spoke, with intent and desire obvious in the tone.

"You won't get it!" Oritel said, panic rising in his own tone. Immediately he felt worry grow for Miriam. "Who are you!" he shouted.

The fog around him lit up as a lightning bolt flared right past his head. Oritel covered his ears as the thunder that followed pummeled his eardrums. "You dare to question us maggot!" A voice roared.

"Calm yourself, Tharma! If you kill him too soon we could lose our chance" Another voice hissed.

"We won't answer your questions mortal!" Tharma growled. "And we can't kill you until she comes."

"You mean Miriam?" Oritel asked, ignoring Tharma's first response. "You're using me as bait to bring Miriam out. You want to take her Dragon Fire powers!"

"Smart young prince." Another voice laughed. "You would be the ideal hero if you were to survive and fulfill the prophecies."

"They wouldn't endanger Miriam like that!" Oritel said. "They won't fall for it!"

"That's where you're wrong. Whose life is more important? The young girl's or your's? You are the last heir to the Sparks throne. They'll want you more than the girl! She's just some random citizen of Sparks!"

"No!" Oritel snapped. The temperature of the region fell significantly. Oritel shivered.

"Enough insolence! We must go sisters. Leave the boy here. There is no way he can escape the obsidian wrath!" Cruel sniggers filled the air and Oritel felt their presences disappear. He fell to his knees in despair.

"What am I going to do? Oritel you're a fool!" Oritel paced angrily. "Where the hell am I!" He threw his sword and it clattered against the hard ground. "Miriam's in danger and I'm trapped here!" He fell into a sitting position on the ground next to his sword and ran a hand through his hair.

An ominous wind blew through the area and Oritel shivered. "Hell. That's where I am." he muttered. He closed his eyes. Exhaustion from the Red Fountain battle was still setting in despite his being out for some unknown amount of time. Oritel fought at it but the exhaustion won. He fell asleep, but he could hardly call it that.

"_Oritel!" Miriam screamed._

_Oritel looked up and saw Miriam. At least he thought it was Miriam. She looked older and was dressed in a beautiful gown. A crown adorned her head. This confused him but he abandoned his confusion when he saw she was being dragged down into the earth by a rock hand. He rushed to aid her, a sword in hand. It wasn't his Red Fountain sword though. This too confused him._

'_Stop getting confused. Help her!' Oritel thought to himself. He took the sword into both of his hands and stabbed it into the ground. "Release the queen!" he shouted._

'_The queen?' Oritel thought to himself as power flowed through him into the sword. 'Where did I get this sword. What is going on?'_

And then the scene changed. The second half of the dream was stranger than the first.

_He was wandering through darkness. But he wasn't scared. Rather he was confused from the earlier scene. Then a voice called to him._

"_Oritel."_

_Oritel whipped around and saw nothing. He continued spinning around, searching for the source of the voice. "What do you want from me? Who are you?"_

"_I cannot answer that. But I have come bearing a message for you." The voice was soothing, entirely different from the voices of his kidnappers. It gave him comfort, but he didn't let his guard down._

"_Why can't you tell me who you are?" Oritel asked suspiciously._

"_Because that could disrupt the flow of everything. Things must fall into place." The voice answered. Her answer was vague, making Oritel's suspicion increase. "Please. I don't have much time." the voice begged._

_Oritel sighed. "Fine. What's your message?"_

"_Don't give up hope. Everything will work out." the voice answered._

"_That's it?" Oritel asked. "Nothing useful? Like an idea on how I'll escape my prison?"_

"_It will make sense in time Oritel. I'm sorry I couldn't help you more. But now I must go."_

Oritel woke up. He stood up and glanced around the area. "Don't give up. Everything will work out." he muttered to himself. Oritel hoped so.


	14. Chapter 13: Unrest and Miriam's Message

**Chapter Thirteen - Unrest and A Message For Miriam**

"You want us to wait outside of Magix while you two go in and gather information in Magix?" Miriam stared in disbelief. They'd left the Alfea school late that night and traveled toward Magix on foot. Now they stood a couple of miles outside of the ravaged city.

"Two people will be less noticeable than six people. Besides, we need to get an idea where Mandragora would hold Oritel and where better than the city she took over as her base of operations. She's holed herself up in the Magix Council building." Saladin had a point. But even Erendor caught on to what Miriam thought about the idea.

"Why bring us now then? We're going to be sitting around useless while you do the work!" Erendor said, frustration sounding in his voice.

"We had to get Miriam out of the school." Faragonda said.

"Why? Wasn't she safer at the school?" Niobe questioned.

"Of course she was. But she'll play a key role in saving Oritel." Faragonda replied, her answer absolutely vague. Miriam held back her chagrin at this answer.

"Wouldn't Mandragora have a spy watching Miriam then?" Erendor asked. The two teachers ignored his question though.

"We need to get moving. Oritel will have only so much time before Mandragora decides on his definite fate. Stay here and stay hidden. Erendor. You'll be in charge." Saladin ignored Erendor's look of frustration. "We should be back at dawn…well about five o'clock." Saladin frowned toward the sky. "Are we clear?"

The three gave muttered answers of agreement. Miriam watched as Miss Faragonda and Professor Saladin both disappeared into the shadows of the forest. She turned back toward Radius, Erendor, and Niobe.

"I feel useless." Erendor sighed.

"Their idea may not appeal to us, but it's best that the experienced members gather the information. Especially since the city is still overrun with those bugs. They'll know how to sneak past them. We just kinda draw attention to ourselves." Radius pointed out.

"Yeah and?" Erendor grumbled. "We're still useless."

"Why do you think they moved Miriam so soon after the battle at Alfea?" Niobe asked.

"Don't know. But I know they heard the question. They didn't answer! They're hiding some bit of information from us. Some part of the plan." Erendor said angrily.

"We probably didn't have a role in that part of the plan anyway." Radius shrugged.

"Whose side are you on?" Erendor stood and crossed his arms, glaring at Radius. He took a couple steps forward, covering the space between them and the two stood staring one another down. "Why are you defending them?"

"I'm not defending them. I'm seeing reason." Radius snapped.

"You aren't even bothered by the fact that we've got to stand around and wait while someone else works to save Oritel." Erendor uncrossed his arms and let his hands ball into fists.

"No I'm not bothered, especially since our involvement at this stage would endanger Oritel for certain!" Radius' voice had risen and soon the two boys were fighting. Niobe glanced nervously at Miriam and Miriam groaned. Obviously Erendor didn't have it in him to play the leader. She stepped between the tow boys and shoved them apart.

"Look. We were told to remain hidden and all your two's yelling is like a siren calling for Mandragora's sentries to come and find us. Be quiet and sit down." Miriam's tone was quiet and even. If they couldn't sense her frustration in her shoving they definitely caught it in her tone. They stopped fighting and looked away. Silence emptied the voids among the members, leaving only a feeling of awkwardness.

"I'm sorry." Erendor finally spoke, disrupting the awkward silence among the group. He sighed resignedly. "It's just that…Oritel's my best friend and…"

"You feel guilty because you froze while he was attacked and taken. We know. But don't you think Radius feels the same way?" Niobe asked gently. "We don't want to stand around any more than you do, but we'll do what we can and must to help him."

Erendor sighed. "Yeah. Well…sorry Radius."

Radius just nodded. "I think I'll just walk around the area and patrol or something." Radius walked off.

"Shouldn't someone go with him?" Niobe asked. When neither Erendor or Miriam answered she headed the direction the Solarian prince headed. "I'll just go with him."

Miriam just leaned against a tree trunk, shifting against the rough bark until she got some moderate comfort from the stance. She shook her head to fight off the weariness, with no avail. Erendor noticed this. "Maybe you should sleep?" he suggested.

Miriam shook her head again. "No. Even if I did…well I want to be ready for whatever Fate's about to throw at us right now."

"Yeah, well you're useless to us exhausted. Get some rest. I'll keep watch." Erendor said stubbornly. Miriam slid down into a sitting position. She became angry with her body because it decided it wanted to follow Erendor's orders. She fought her drooping eyelids as long as she could, but lost and drifted into a fitful sleep.

_Miriam was taken by surprise. She found herself entrapped in bonds of rock. The rock had just risen up out of the ground and snatched her. She struggled in the rock's grasp, trying to summon her power from within. But it was a no go. "Oritel!" she suddenly cried out._

_Why did she just call for Oritel? Her question was soon answered as she saw Oritel come sprinting out of nowhere. Well, what looked like an older version of Oritel. Older and dressed more regally. Like a king. Why was he dressed like that? Miriam struggled. Then she noticed a strange weight on her head. Was she wearing a crown? Miriam was jolted out of her questioning as she felt the rock shift and begin to drag her downward._

"_Release the queen!" Older Oritel shouted. He stabbed his sword into the ground before him and a crack opened up, streaking toward her. Miriam struggled more, her eyes tight as fear took her over. She didn't know what was going on. She didn't know why it was going on. She wanted it to stop._

_Then the tightness of the rock entrapping her disappeared. She no longer heard the cracking of the earth or the clang of Older Oritel's sword. Miriam opened her eyes and found herself standing in absolute darkness. She panicked and ran. There was no light. Miriam tried to make a flame appear in her hand. There was no light. Miriam tried to scream. But she wasn't to be heard._

_Then there was light. Miriam saw a small light glimmering off in the distance. She headed toward it, it's golden glow a hope in her eyes. But it never got any closer. Miriam grew frustrated and tried running toward it. She wasn't getting closer. She was going to try yelling at it, but she stopped. Miriam could hear a gentle voice talking to her._

"_Miriam."_

_The voice was soft, Miriam's name spoken with a loving fondness. "Who are you?" Miriam called. She heard herself call and jumped in surprise._

"_You cannot know that. Instead I'll give you the message I've come to deliver to you." the voice answered._

"_Tell me who you are!" Miriam insisted. But the source of the voice remained adamant._

"_I cannot. If I do, things will not fall into place. Time is of the essence for both me and you, so let us not waste it. I wish though, that I could tell you everything. That you and I could spend more time with one another."_

_Miriam was surprised by the wistfulness the voice had sounded. The voice was sad about something. She decided not to press it with any more questions. "What message do you have for me then?" Miriam asked gently._

"_Everything will work out. Your family will be together again, one day. Don't lose hope."_

_Miriam looked up. "Is that all?"_

"_Yes. I wish I had more for you. Useful information on how to defeat Mandragora and the growing evil. But those tasks aren't meant to be yours, so I can't say anything. Keep fighting. You're fighting now will inspire the fighting later. I must go." The light began to recede, then hesitated. "Your love must remain strong, Miriam. Remember that."_

And Miriam woke up.


	15. Chapter 14: Not Mandragora?

**Chapter Fourteen - Not Mandragora?**

"Your love must remain strong." Niobe repeated the words. Miriam had just finished explaining her dream to the Tides girl. "The voice obviously meant your love for Oritel. I think the voice wanted you to keep on loving him. Your love is important."

Miriam shivered. "I don't want our love to be just because the voice told me she wants it to be."

Niobe nodded solemnly. "Yeah. I understand."

Miriaim looked at Niobe. "Do you really? I mean, you are in an arranged marriage."

Niobe shrugged. "Some times what someone wants and what's good for the future end up being the same thing. I'm lucky that way."

But am I? Miriam thought quietly to herself. She'd liked Oritel. She'd even kissed him. Oritel was smart, funny, and definitely handsome. But could she live knowing her love for him was preordained?

"Saladin and Faragonda are back." Erendor said then, interrupting Miriam's thoughts. Miriam turned and saw the two traipsing through the brush and shrubs that filled the forest covering Magix. They strode over to the group, both wearing grim expressions. Worry filled Miriam and she took in a small breath, as if bracing herself for whatever bad news was about to come.

"Did you find anything?" Niobe asked quietly. "Do we know where Mandragora has hidden Oritel?"

"Mandragora doesn't have Oritel." Faragonda said slowly. "Nor does she know he's missing, much less know where he is."

"What?" Miriam's heart began to beat faster. "How will we find him?"

Faragonda looked away and Saladin shook his head solemnly. Miriam's hopes fell. "So you're saying we won't find him." Niobe said quietly. The two said nothing.

"We can't just give up!" Erendor said angrily.

"Yeah!" Radius agreed.

"Do either of you have any ideas where we can look? We know nothing about this evil. We know nothing of Mandragora. We won't know how to locate and stop them." Saladin threw both the boys dark looks, but the two Specialists' determination only grew.

"Well, what of the bug creatures? Mandragora must be from one of the Insectus realms." Erendor suggested.

"Oh yes. And the Insectus realms are destroying themselves? I don't think so." Saladin humped.

"She's possibly only from there. Doesn't mean the realm is aligned with her." Radius said coolly. "I say we should check there."

"Mandragora is not from the Insectus realms. Her dialect and accent is off." Niobe stated.

"You can't go by that! A person's accent and dialect can change when they've been placed in an entirely different environment!" Erendor argued.

"Don't you dare start your little tantrum on me!" Niobe warned.

"Tantrum! He and I are the only two people fighting in Oritel's favor right now! Everybody else wants to give up and walk away, like he didn't exist." Radius shouted.

"We don't want to give up!" Saladin roared. Soon the others all fell into a huge argument. Miriam just sat there helplessly watching. Everything would work out. Hah. More like everything would fall apart. They never fought like this when Oritel was there. Then again, they wouldn't have reason to fight if Oritel was there.

Where would Mandragora hide Oritel? It wasn't even Mandragora. Yet they all assume they should look to Mandragora's origins for the answer. Miriam thought about the boys' description of Oritel's assailants and kidnappers. There had been three forms. Three ghostly forms. Not bugs. And they were laughing. Teredor described their laughs as classic wicked witch.

"We're looking in all the wrong places." Miriam breathed. She looked up at the quarreling group. "We're looking in all the wrong places." she said louder. Nobody heard her. She cleared her throat, loudly. The group ceased their bickering and looked at her curiously. "We're looking in all the wrong places." Miriam repeated. "Witch-like things took Oritel. Not bugs. And Mandragora was attacking Alfea when Oritel was kidnapped."

"So Oritel's kidnapping and Mandragora's attacks aren't related?" Miss Faragonda pondered this question. "Mandragora has only been seen with bugs. No other witches or fairies. Her army is entirely compromised of the hideous bug things. That and the fact that you said she knew nothing of Oritel's kidnapping…"

"…supports Miriam's theory." Saladin finished. Saladin covered his eyes with his hand. "We overlooked too many of the facts. We went on to assume that Mandragora was responsible for Oritel's abduction just because she was the immediate threat at the time. We weren't able to conceive the fact that there could've been an entirely different force at work here." He sighed resignedly.

"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go get 'em!" Radius said.

"Er. Radius? We don't know who the witches are. We can't go get 'em until we know their identity, their location, and their capabilities." Niobe pointed out. "We just can't go about blind like that."

"What else do you two remember about those witch creatures?" Miriam asked Erendor and Radius. The two boys at one another. Erendor sighed and bowed his head.

"Well, their voices…they were more or less in our heads as well as in the air." Radius suggested weakly.

"Suggesting that they're powerful." Erendor added.

"You've said that." Niobe groaned. "This is going nowhere."

"There can't be very many powerful witches like that in the universe." Miriam turned to Miss Faragonda and Professor Saladin. "Right?"

Miss Faragonda and Professor Saladin looked at one another. Miss Faragonda turned her gaze back to Miriam. "Remember, Teredor said they were three ghostly forms too. These witches could be from the past, spirits brought back because of their powers and their thirst for more power. That would make it harder for us to narrow it down."

"It'd make it near impossible!" Saladin exclaimed.

"How many witches do you know would work in a group of three?" Miriam asked.

"Well, three is a powerful number in witch magic." Miss Faragonda stated. "There were many covens of three witches. All of which were powerful."

Miriam bit her lip and looked at the grass at her feet. Frustration was bubbling up again for all of them. She could feel the tensions breaking again after she'd only just restored them. There had to be a clue. Something they could use. Some fact that would lead them somewhere.

"Besides that, Faragonda and I wouldn't know so much about witches. Our studies drift more toward the good end of the alignment spectrum." Saladin mentioned, annoyed with Miriam's questions.

"It never occurred to you two that you may need to study up on possible ancient evils or keep an eye on possible modern evils?" Erendor asked, sarcastically.

"Erendor stop. You're not helping. You're hindering." Miriam pleaded.

"Saladin, what if we…" Faragonda started.

"No. We won't." Saladin said stubbornly.

"What is it?" Miriam asked Faragonda.

Miss Faragonda hesitated. "Well, someone we may know might be able to help us in identifying those witches."

"Faragonda…I'd rather not go to her." Saladin cautioned.

"She may be Oritel's only hope, Saladin." Faragonda stated. "We may have no other choice. Your pride will have to suffer some."

"Who?" Miriam urged, begging for an answer.

Miss Faragonda smiled. "An old friend and enemy of ours."


	16. Chapter 15: Griffin

Chapter 15- Griffin

"I really don't like this Faragonda." Saladin grumbled.

"Nonsense Saladin. She's sure to help us in a time like this. Odd that Cloudtower wasn't attacked though." Faragonda frowned as she looked toward the gloomy, looming spiral towers that made up the Cloudtower School for witches.

"Witches never help anybody. It's against their code of conduct." It was Erendor's turn to grumble. He agreed with Saladin in this situation. "So we're going to a witch for help?"

"It doesn't matter what label she's under. She's a capable, intelligent, and good being who understands when she needs to interfere with affairs in order to preserve the harmony of the magical universe. Besides there's a saying we use in Magix we can apply to this very situation. 'It takes a witch to know a witch.'" Miss Faragonda recited.

"What happened to the saying 'Don't trust a witch?'" Saladin muttered.

"Oh stop it Saladin! It'll be good to see her again anyway." Miss Faragonda said cheerfully.

"So you trust her?" Niobe asked cautiously.

"Yes I do. With my very life. She, Saladin, and I had many adventures with one another and she never failed us. Saladin is just very stubborn when it comes to asking for help. I think it's a trait all men share." Faragonda said, earning dark looks from Radius and Erendor, as well as Saladin.

"You've got that right." Niobe laughed.

Miriam stared in surprise. The laugh and cheer was genuine and free in such dark, dreading times. The group was teasing and laughing with one another as though nothing bad had ever happened. But all their eyes told a different story. Their eyes showed all their worry and despair over the events of the last few months. A few times she'd even noted the others exchanging those feeling between one another with wary glances.

"You okay Miriam?" Niobe asked quietly. Miriam looked at her friend and fought back her urge to scream 'No!'. She couldn't feel alright. Her world, her life, her universe, and more were all falling to pieces before her and no matter how fast she worked to fit the pieces back together, she knew she'd never catch up.

"I could be worse." Miriam muttered softly. "I could be trapped like Oritel." She gazed back up at the towering structure that served as a home to the witches during the school months. "I hope we're following the right path." she prayed quietly to whatever entity that would take pity on her and keep her going the right direction. "What do you think? Are we doing the right thing by going to the witch?" Miriam looked at Niobe.

Niobe sighed. "Well, the witches I've run into haven't been much for company and mutual respect. But Faragonda seems to trust this witch and has some strong faith in her too. I don't think it'd hurt to look her up." Niobe gave a small shrug. "They always say you can't judge a book by predecessors."

"What?" Miriam looked confused as she glanced at Niobe. "Don't you mean judge it by its cover?"

"Yeah, but the quote needed a touch up to better fit the situation." Niobe grinned sheepishly. "Seriously. Just because of the witches of old were mean-spirited, cackling hags doesn't mean that this woman is a bad witch. There's always exceptions. And would Miss Faragonda make nice with a mean witch? No. She'd make nice with an okay and capable witch."

"I hope you're right." Miriam looked at the ground as she walked on. 'I hope you're right." she thought quietly to herself.

The group soon came to the large entrance of the Cloudtower school. The deep purples and shady red colors supported the darker, gothic styles of the architecture. The over all style was twisted and stygian. Structures jutted upward in places like knives jabbing into the gray skies. Lightning struck one of the towers and the whole school groaned and creaked, as though it were a living thing.

"Thank the gods I'm a fairy." Niobe whispered to Miriam. "Could you imagine going to school here, much less living here? Poor Luna would have a heart attack. She'd whine about having to redoing her wardrobe styles and she'd probably cry about the lack of colors." Niobe and Miriam shared a small smile, then followed Faragonda and Saladin into the school.

"I really don't like this…" Erendor muttered behind Miriam and Niobe. "These witches are staring at us like blood-thirsty predators. I can see their minds at work on how to make our lives miserable."

"Oh, lighten up Erendor! Some of these girls are good-looking!" Radius gave a couple of girls a friendly and flirtatious wink, earning himself several dark looks and a glare or two.

"Gosh, he sure is dense!" Niobe chuckled. "He and Luna may not complete one another but I think they'll still have a long, happy, beautiful relationship."

Listening to the others talk of relationships and seeing Radius flirt only made Miriam think of Oritel even more. Would they have a long, happy, beautiful relationship? Would their love grow so much that they'd even get married? Was Oritel going to be the man that would complete her? She had so many questions about the relationship she wasn't even positive on. The real question was would any of those questions get answered? Would they save Oritel? Or would those witches dispose of him?

"Well, well. Three fairies, two heroes and a wizard all walk into Cloudtower. Sounds rather like a bad bar joke if you ask me." A sarcastic sounding voice echoed through the hall. Miriam looked up to see who had spoken. She spotted a tall, proud looking woman with a rather pallid skin tone. She wore a long black dress and had her dark violet hair piled up atop her head. Her piercing eyes looked the group over and Miriam shivered as she was scanned.

"Ah. Griffin. How pleasant to see you again!" Faragonda hummed happily. "You look well. Have you taken up a teaching position here at Cloudtower?"

"That I have Faragonda." Griffin said stiffly.

"Enough with the exchange of pleasantries. Might as well get to the point and tell her why we're here Faragonda." Saladin said gruffly. "We can just gather our needed information and go."

"You're here for information?" Griffin raised one of her eyebrows cynically. "What information would I have that you can't access anyplace else?"

"Ancient witch lore and legends." Faragonda replied. "And it's not so much we don't have access to the information, it's our time limit. We've run into a bit of a dead end and have gone back to look through all the facts we've gathered. We're hoping the bit we have picked apart will give us a lead."

"Very well. Let's go to my office though. We don't need these nosy students to be all curious with issues that have nothing to do with them." With that said, Griffin turned on her heel and strode down the cavernous hallway. The younger group members all looked at one another, then followed Faragonda and Saladin after Griffin.

After leading all of them down a number of gloomy and dimly lit hallways, Griffin finally opened a door and ushered them into a spacious office. "Go on. Take a seat. I promise my chairs won't eat you." Griffin chuckled to herself. "So? What ancient witch legends and lore should I dig up for you?"

"We're looking for information on a particular coven of three witches." Faragonda said calmly as she took a seat opposite Griffin.

Griffin laughed. "Oh that narrows it down! Triunes of witches are only common place throughout all of witch history! You should come back for my seminar on the power of three and witch magic." Griffin stood up. "I'm not amused Faragonda!"

"These witches are different, Griffin." Saladin said darkly. "The three of them kidnapped one of my students. That and we believe they may have ties to Mandragora, the woman who's been destroying Magix."

"These witches are indeed different. They're ghostly visages rather than solid, living beings and they are powerful. And their target was a bit specific, I mean the Prince of Sparks?" Faragonda shook her head. "But beyond that I'm afraid we don't know much." They went on to talk about their trip into Magix.

Miriam turned to Niobe. "Oritel's the prince of Sparks?"

Niobe looked at her. "Yeah. You're from Sparks. You should know your royalty."

"But…" Miriam's attention was returned to the discussion at hand as she watched Griffin walk over to her bookshelf. The witch removed a worn, musty book from the shelf and returned to her desk.

"I have several ideas about who they may be." Griffin paged carefully through the tome. "You say your boys will recognize them?"

"Yes. We can identify them as needed." Erendor stated. "You have a picture or description?"

Griffin said nothing as she slowly looked through the pages. The room fell to silence, everyone's attention focused on Griffin and the book she was reading through. Miriam shared a nervous glance with Radius. They both knew that this witch was their last hope on finding Oritel.

"Is this them?" Griffin asked quietly. Miriam's attention snapped back to Griffin and the book.

Erendor stood up slowly and looked at the picture. He quickly looked back up at Griffin. "Yes that's them! How'd you figure it out so quickly?"

Griffin set the book down. "This triune is one of the most famous in the universe. So famous and yet they're so obscure to everybody." She paused before going on. "They're called the Ancestral Witches. The mothers of all witches. As in they were the first users of the darker magics. They took the minor cursing and spell casting of Wicca users and brought it to a whole new level. They inspired countless witches to become even stronger and more powerful. But they also inspired and encouraged evil."

"But what do they want with Oritel?" Radius asked. "We understand that they're evil. Why Oritel?"

"One, his status as a prince makes him a likely target. Two, the Ancestresses were always looking for power. What is Sparks famous for? Dragon Fire. The realm is said to be the place where…"

"...the Great Dragon settled after creating the magical universe." Miriam finished for Griffin. "I'm from Sparks and I've never heard about these Ancestresses. The books don't talk about them."

"Centuries ago, there was a great battle between them and your ancestors. The magical realms all banned together and locked them away. Of course locking them away will have been useless if they can get free again." Griffin sighed. "And look, they're free."

"Do you have any idea where they'd take a prisoner? We need to find Oritel." Miriam pleaded with Griffin.

Griffin turned to a page in her book. "Possibly to the realm they were trapped in. The realm of Obsidian. Your ancestors bound them to that realm in hopes of stopping their rampage."

Erendor stood up suddenly. "Well, that's that, we're heading to the realm of Obsidian and rescuing Oritel."

"Do you know where it is?" Griffin asked with an amused smile on her lips. "I love the younger Specialists. So much bravado but a lack of knowledge and wit to support it." she laughed.

"Where is the realm?" Miriam asked.

"No one really knows. Only a few people have hints that can lead to a portal. Well, I suppose Mandragora will know where it is. She's a servant of the Ancestresses." Griffin leaned forward on her clasped hands. "Another would probably be the King of Sparks himself."

"We wanted to avoid going to him. Nobody knows Oritel's missing. We were hoping to get him back without issue." Saladin said. "We don't want to bring the king into this."

"You aren't making this easy." Griffin muttered. "Then we go and get the answers out of Mandragora."


	17. Chapter 16: Separation

_Chapter 16 - Separation _

_The group approached the city of Magix with the utmost care and caution. One could barely hear the others step, thanks to the spell Faragonda had placed on them. Griffin had accompanied them on their search for Oritel, to Faragonda's delight and Saladin's chagrin. She was just as experienced as either of the veteran magic users, so Miriam felt some comfort the witch had come with._

_Staring at the city, Miriam felt anger rise within her. Magix was once bustling with people and held beautiful parks and buildings. Now it was like a complete wasteland, no-man's land, as they walked through. There was no sign of life, though the buildings and streets had obviously been ransacked._

"_Where have all the bug soldiers gone?" Erendor muttered aloud. "They were here about a day ago."_

"_Well they didn't just up and leave." Radius fumed. "There were so many bugs, it'd be impossible to mobilize all of them in that amount of time."_

"_Unless Mandragora's army was a spell. Maybe she summoned them?" Niobe suggested._

"_Mandragora would have to have strong powers to keep them summoned for so long and to summon them at such close time intervals." Faragonda shook her head. "Not even those with Dragon Fire powers are capable of both of those feats. One or the other maybe."_

_Miriam let them talk the situation out and focused on the hard concrete beneath her feet. She didn't know what she'd do or say when the found Oritel. Now that she knew he was the Prince of Sparks, everything was going to get complicated. She loved Oritel, but would Oritel love her once she revealed the truth about her family? Miriam closed her eyes tight and remembered his embrace, the way he'd look at her…perhaps it was noticeable that they loved each other. That's what Luna had told her. Would a love that noticeable be able to withstand the truth?_

_Tears slipped past her tightly closed eyelids and streamed down her cheeks. She thought about her leaving Sparks. She not only went because she was forced to leave. Miriam also left to avoid something…_

"_Bug!" Niobe yelped._

_Miriam snapped out of her thoughts and looked up to get smacked to the ground. The bug creature's eyes bore into her and its mandibles gnawed angrily, threatening to bite her. One of its pincer legs had jabbed into her arm and had her pinned to the ground. She struggled and cried out in pain as the pincer leg twisted in her arm._

"_Miriam!" someone cried out. Miriam heard fighting not too far off. She brought her legs up and slammed both of her feet upward into the bug creature's abdomen, shoving it off of her. She screamed in pain as the pincer slid out of her arm._

"_Miriam!" Niobe was at her side in seconds. "Miriam? Are you alright?"_

"_Yes. Yes! Let's move!" Miriam forced herself to her feet, despite the pain in her arm. "The others need our help."_

_The bugs had swarmed out of nowhere and attacked the group without any warning whatsoever. It was obvious they were to about to be overwhelmed. Each of the group would've had to take out twenty themselves to get through less than half of the army. But the bugs weren't trying to overwhelm them. Rather, they seemed to be rounding up the group of them._

"_Why would they do that?" Miriam muttered to herself. She has no idea, but the group couldn't stay together if that was what the bugs wanted._

"_Pull into a group!" Saladin ordered._

"_No!" Miriam fought through the bug mass, away from her friends. The creature she fought against hissed and spit angrily at her but she ignored them._

"_Miriam!" Niobe shouted. "Miriam, come back!"_

"_What is she doing?" Griffin roared. "Grab her! The bugs will get her!"_

_Miriam felt the bugs swarm around her in attempt to push her back tward her friends. But she fought them and continued to push her way through. "Split up!" Miriam shouted. "They want us all together!"_

"_Are you crazy?" Radius stared incredulously. "We can't fight these things alone!"_

"_They want us together! We can't allow that! Split up now!" Miriam jumped up on a bug's back and leaped into the air. "Go Winx!" The magic flowed through her body and coursed through her veins. Dragon fire seemed to flow over her body and burn away her clothes, leaving her in her sparkling Winx outfit. The wings on her back fluttered furiously as she flew over the army of creatures._

"_Miriam!" Faragonda cried out. But Miriam flew further from them and soon they were too far away for her to hear them._

_Miriam whipped around buildings and flew down alleys. She heard the scuttling of the monsters behind her. Furious hisses and screeches echoed in the air around her, bouncing off the empty streets and buildings. She had to keep moving or else the monsters would get her and drag her back to her friends. She just knew she was right. Mandragora wanted them together to present to her evil mistresses._

"_Speak of the devil." Miriam muttered as she spotted the woman looming on the top of an apartment complex._

"_Ah. Miriam. I knew it'd be only a matter of time before you came." Mandragora sneered. "Do you want to see your beloved Oritel again? I could accompany you…"_

"_Forget it Mandragora. You'll just tell me where he is and I'll find him myself." Miriam shouted._

_Mandragora leapt down from her high pedestal and levitated right next to Miriam. Miriam observed the woman and her hideous cruel features. The two of them glared at one another face to face. "You'll never find him. Never! You'll die at my hands or my mistresses' hands before you get even close." Mandragora spat._

_A wave of dizziness hit Miriam hard and she felt herself waver in the air. She fought it. What was happening? It was getting harder for Miriam to breathe. "I'll find him. I know I will." Miriam blurted. She remembered the words of the stranger from her dream. The voice seemed to speak to her even now. 'Your love must remain strong. Don't lose hope.'_

Mandragora laughed. "You're pathetic." Magic built up in Mandragora's hands. "I'll take you back to my mistresses myself. Alive or not."

Miriam flew up to avoid Mandragora's attack. Mandragora screamed angrily from below and threw more blasts toward Miriam. Miriam pushed herself out of the way, just barely. A blast flew past her face, too close for comfort. She struggled to keep herself in flight. Her pattern wasn't smooth like it usually was, but erratic like an injured butterfly.

'I need to land.' Miriam thought to herself as another wave of dizziness took her over. The next thing she knew, she was on her hands and knees on the top of one of the building complexes, gasping for air. Her body throbbed and her head ached. The hard concrete was cold beneath her hands and knees and she could feel bruising starting form there. She must've hit the concrete pretty hard.

"Oooh! This is fun!" Mandragora sniggered. "What next? You can't get away from me in this state Miriam! There is no way you'll get back to your friends like this."

"I have to try…" Miriam whispered as she tried to get to her feet. She collapsed flat on the concrete, lying splayed to hang on as her vision made everything spin. Blackness took over the edges of the rotating world and threatened to send her to the realm of unconsciousness. The last thing Miriam saw was Mandragora's grotesque figure looming over her and laughing. Then thinking was beyond Miriam's capability after that.


	18. Chapter 17: Trapped Together

Chapter 17 - Trapped Together

Oritel paced back and forth furiously. He'd been trapped in whatever-the-name-of-that-God-forsaken-place-was for nearly three days. Those evil spirits kept returning to taunt him and torture him. He didn't know how much more he could take.

Whenever his agitated state threatened to drive him insane, Oritel would think about Miriam. How he'd kissed her and held her to him. How she had carefully wrapped her arms around his neck and casually deepened the kiss. How her beautiful green eyes sparkled afterward. A heat would alight within him and burn away his agitation about being trapped.

But then he'd remember the witch spirits' plans to harm Miriam and rip her powers away for their own selfish desires. They'd use gentle Miriam's powers to cause total chaos and destruction throughout all the magical realms. All good and order would fall because Oritel was helpless and couldn't protect the girl he loved. His anger would return with even more ferocity and he'd be even more agitated than before.

He had to get out of there. He had to locate Miriam and warn her before those witches got to her. Oritel had to help protect the universe. Oritel had to help protect Sparks.

Oritel quickly reassessed his prison. There were no escape routes. His gaze took in the dreadful fog and spearing rock formations that sliced through. The hard ground crunched beneath his boots as started another infuriated pace. There had to be something that would help him!

He just had to regain control of his senses and focus. If Red Fountain had taught him anything, it was that allowing the emotions loose in a critical situation brought the inevitable worst case scenarios a whole lot faster than if the emotions were kept in check. This decreased one's chances of victory and survival greatly.

He wondered to himself with grim amusement how long it took his friends to notice he was missing. Would they have reported him MIA by now? Oritel hoped they wouldn't be out looking for him. Rather, he wanted everyone focused on the war efforts. Above all else, those witch creatures and their Mandragora pet needed to be stopped. That goal was far more important than his life, despite his father's opinions.

An ominous wind blew past him and an echo from his memory arose in his mind. _Definitely the Oritel predicted to stop us._ Oritel shivered. What did that witch mean by that? He was predicted? To stop the evil? It didn't make any sense to him. He wasn't cut out for that job. Oritel wasn't overly strong, smart, or brave. He didn't really have any skills that would withstand the power of those witches, let alone stop their threatening the universe. Look where he was. They captured and trapped him in some God forsaken realm for crying out loud. That alone should be proof enough that he wasn't meant to be some great hero or protector of the universe.

Oritel stopped his wandering and thinking. While trapped he'd thought of a lot of things in his life. He tried to make sense of everything that had happened to him thus far and what would happen to him later. Being alone really got one to thinking about one's place in the magical universe. And Oritel just figured out his place wasn't going to be the King of Sparks. It was something else completely, something more important than a mere birthright and crown. He felt it.

Over and over, all of these thoughts went through his mind. Over and over he thought them through carefully. And over and over he got the same answers. Save Miriam. Save the magical universe. Save his realm.

Another wind swept through. This one brought hostility and anger. The same feeling Oritel got before the witches would come a-taunting. Immediately, Oritel looked for a place to hide. He didn't want to deal with the evil now. He was tired of listening to how he'd fail and how they'd win. Oritel wanted none of it anymore.

He hid behind a copse of needle-like stone structures. And he waited for the witch creatures to show up.

But they didn't. Instead he saw a wicked-looking figure appear. Mandragora. He couldn't see her well, but from her silhouette it was easy to tell.

"Mistresses! I have brought you your prize!" Mandragora laughed wickedly. She walked closer to Oritel's hiding place and Oritel got a better look at her and her cruel features. "Come and claim her while she's weak!"

That's when Oritel noticed Mandragora carrying something. Rather someone. In Mandragora's arms lay Miriam, limp, beaten, and injured. Her arm dangled and Oritel saw a red liquid dribbling down, falling onto the ground and pooling. Miriam was bleeding badly. He clenched his fist and stepped out from his hiding place. Mandragora heard him and whipped around to face him, Miriam still in her arms.

"What did you do to her?" Oritel's voice was low and dangerous. Hearing himself like that shocked him. Was that his voice? He ignored it and focused on saving Miriam. "What happened?"

Mandragora laughed. "I defeated the girl. And so I've brought her for my mistresses. She is what they wanted. She is what they'll get."

"Not if I can help it." Oritel said. His gaze fell to his sword just beyond Mandragora. He had to get his sword.

"What would you do? You're a pathetic little prince incapable of using magic. I'm a mystical being who can summon hordes of bug creatures to destroy and take over." Mandragora smiled, baring her teeth like a vicious animal.

"Only at the bidding of your mistresses." Oritel snapped. "If they don't command it, you can't do it!"

"I can do anything! I am Mandragora! I command armies of insectivus creatures! No one can stop me!" Mandragora was screaming, her voice shrill with hate. Oritel fought a shiver that threatened to run down his spine. The woman sounded so sure that Oritel nearly believed her.

The two were circling one another now. One step at a time, painstakingly slow. With every step Oritel got even closer to his sword. He just had to keep her agitated and distracted so she'd keep up her ranting. Psyche the enemy. That was another thing he'd picked up at Red Fountain. "Seriously? Bugs are pathetic. I took them out easily when they attacked Red Fountain." Oritel taunted.

"My aren't pathetic! Your little school was left reeling after I attacked them!" Mandragora snapped. "As was Alfea! And soon Cloudtower will receive the same treatment! Soon the rest of the universe would face the wrath of Mandragora!" Mandragora snapped, her face contorted with rage.

Just a little further. Oritel was mere feet away. He tried to keep eye contact with the agitated witch. He tried not to look so obvious as he slowly made his way over to his weapon. The woman was so enraged, she was oblivious to his true intent. "You mean the wrath of your mistresses. When the universe fall to them they won't think of you. Rather, they'd think of the mistresses who'd command you."

"No!" Mandragora cried out. Her gaze fell down to Miriam in her arms. "I'll be known. I'll kill her myself."

Oritel looked up. "You don't want to do that."

"Try me. I'll bring Miriam to them dead. Then we'll who'll be known." Mandragora's eyes glinted maniacally.

Oritel rolled and snatched his sword off the ground. He was on his feet in seconds and was running at Mandragora. Mandragora stared in surprise as he came closer. Oritel swung his sword and tried to hit Mandragora with a clean head shot. Mandragora dropped Miriam to the ground and held up her hands, creating some kind of barrier between her and Oritel's sword.

"You were distracting me." Mandragora laughed and waved her hand. Oritel was hit by a blast and landed hard on the ground. "You were spinning lies to make me angry so I wouldn't see you go for your sword. I was foolish to let you do that."

Oritel struggled to pick himself up off the ground. His sword arm ached and shook after he'd hit the shield and landed on it. It was hard to move. "Yeah. You were foolish all right."

Mandragora was about to attack Oritel again when she froze, as though she heard something. "My mistresses are calling me." Mandragora grinned. "I will go to them. Apparently they are attacking Alfea and wish for my assistance. After we take down Alfea I'll bring them to Miriam. Then, the universe will be ours." Mandragora turned from Oritel, then was gone in a flash of shadow.

Oritel scrambled over to Miriam. "Miriam! Miriam! Can you hear me?" Oritel carefully pushed her red hair out of her face. Miriam was pale, exhaustion easily readable on her face. Oritel felt for a pulse and got one, to his relief. "Miriam. You need to wake up. Please." Miriam didn't respond. Oritel glanced around in search of an escape. Then he recalled there were none, unless you knew how to open portals.

His gaze then returned to Miriam. He looked at her arm. Something had pierced through and blood was seeping through the wound. He saw some of the skin surrounding the wound was green. Something had infected her. And the infection would kill her if it went untreated. He had to get Miriam out of there. But he had no idea how he'd do that.


	19. Chapter 18: Help at Last

**Chapter 18 - Help at Last**

The minutes began to pass by slowly. Oritel just sat there, cradling Miriam's nearly lifeless body in his arms. There was nothing he could do but watch her as she died. Her breathing had begun to slow considerably, and a sheen of sweat covered her even paler face. Mandragora's poison was destroying every ounce of energy Miriam had to fight for her life. Oritel could feel this happening in her thin shuddering body.

Oritel closed his eyes in defeat. He'd dealt with death before and he knew when death was winning. Memories of his mother filled his thoughts. _Oritel walked into his mother's bedroom. He scampered up toward the bed. "Mommy!" Oritel's young voice echoed in his mother's room. "Mommy…" His mother lay sleeping on the bed. Oritel reached a small hand out and grabbed his mother's hand. It was cold, which was strange. His mother's hand was always warm. Oritel squeezed his mother's hand. But his mother didn't squeeze back. She was gone._

Oritel shook his head. Then he reached down and took Miriam's delicate hand into his own. He squeezed her hand gently. It was warm and soft in his own. He nearly jumped when he felt the smallest squeeze in return. Miriam was still there, suffering.

Tears fell and Oritel closed his eyes in defiance. It didn't matter. The tears continued to fall and he cried. His life lay before him in shambles. Everything he thought would work out for him wouldn't. The witches and their servant Mandragora would take control of everything. The strongest realms would fight for some time, but eventually they would fall. The magic schools would be destroyed. People would be hurt, killed, even forced into subjugation. And Miriam would die in his arms.

Helplessness is the worst feeling. Being unable to do anything, to have no say when Fate decides to take over; it was a terrible feeling. Oritel had felt it when his mother died. But now the feeling was slowly becoming all he felt.

"_I can't believe we worried about you." _The ancient witch creature's voice echoed through his head. Now he couldn't believe they'd worried about him either.

There was a disturbance in the air. A wind blew and Oritel tensed. Something or someone was coming. Oritel hugged Miriam tighter to him. The disturbance felt different from Mandragora or the witches. It wasn't ominous. It wasn't dark. The wind didn't send shivers down Oritel's spine. Whatever was coming, Oritel had no idea of the nature of its intentions. He had to prepare for the worst.

His hand closed about the hilt of his sword, which lay next to him. The cold, hard hilt comfortably fit in his hand. He held the sword firmly and sat waiting for the disturbance to find him.

A rumble rang through the air. Then a bright flash penetrated the deep darkness of the realm. Oritel dropped his sword and shielded his eyes with his free hand. The other tightened its grip on Miriam's hand. The shadows reclaimed the area and the light disappeared.

"Is anyone here?" A voice called out. The voice was familiar to Oritel, though he couldn't quite remember whose it was exactly.

"Over here! Help!" Oritel cried out. He looked down at Miriam. "Hang on. Please." Oritel whispered.

"Oritel! Saladin, we've found him!" The voice called. Oritel glanced up and saw a figure come out of the shadows. Miss Faragonda hurried forward. "Oritel! We've been searching for you for nearly four days now. Miriam…" Miss Faragonda fell quiet as she knelt next to Oritel and took Miriam's limp body into her own arms. "What has Mandragora done to you?" Faragonda whispered.

"Is he alright?" Saladin asked as he too approached the huddled Oritel. "He's alive." Saladin's eyes fell to Miriam lying in Faragonda's arms. "We'll need to get her to safety." Saladin said.

"By the time we return to Alfea, she'll be gone." Faragonda gently laid Miriam on the hard ground.

"What are you going to do?" Saladin asked Faragonda. "What's affecting her even?"

Miss Faragonda picked up Miriam's arm, which was covered in dried blood. "Poison. She was attacked by Mandragora's bug. It's too deep within her system now for us to perform an extraction spell."

"What can we do?" Oritel asked bitterly. "She's going to die."

"Not if I can help it." Faragonda stood up and raised her hands in the air. Her hands made complex patterns in the air and a small crystal vial appeared in her hands. "I'll use this."

"Your fairy dust? Will it work on injuries of this degree? I thought it only worked on minor wounds and injuries." Saladin pointed out.

Faragonda carefully took the vial into her hands and cradled it. She knelt down next to Miriam, positioning herself right next to the injured arm. "I'm going to pour it directly into the wound. Hopefully the dust will react with the poison and force it back out through the wound."

"What if it just pushes the dust out Faragonda? And that much magic being forced into Miriam could…have negative effects." Saladin carefully worded his final words, but Oritel knew what he'd been about to say.

"Do we have any other choice? Do we have any other ideas? Do we have any time?" Faragonda strung out the questions and they seemed to hang in the air between the two veteran magic users. "No. We don't have any of that. We work with what we do have and hope for the best." And Faragonda uncapped the vial. She very slowly poured the dust directly into the wound.

Oritel stared as the dust seemed to disappear into the wound. Nothing seemed to be happening for the first few minutes. Oritel worried that it wouldn't work and Miriam was just doomed to die. But he remained quiet as he watched Faragonda calmly pour the dust.

Eventually Faragonda stopped pouring the dust. "Now we watch and wait."

Time elapsed. Oritel watched and fidgeted. Still there was no movement from Miriam. But he saw a trickle of black fluid begin oozing out of the wound. He stared at it, then glanced at Faragonda and Saladin.

"It's working." Saladin breathed. "The poison is coming out."

Soon a small flow of the poison seeped out of the wound. Faragonda would wipe it away carefully, so as not to allow it to go back into the wound. Miriam began to shake, her limbs vibrating in reaction to the increased magic. Sweat dripped from her forehead. Oritel gently brushed away some of the sweat. Miriam's breath became erratic as she fought off the poison and magic. She moaned softly and Oritel bit his lip. More suffering for Miriam.

"We can't move her until we're sure most of the poison has left her." Faragonda said. She glanced at Saladin. "You go to the rest of the group and tell them we've found Oritel and Miriam. They'll want to know."

Saladin nodded. "I'll be back shortly." He hurried away, leaving Faragonda and Oritel alone with Miriam.

"Those witches…they wanted to kill Miriam. They're the ones behind all the evil. Their armies are causing all that trouble." Oritel blurted.

"Yes. I know." Faragonda nodded. "My friend Griffin helped us to finish the puzzle. We now know who our enemies are and what they want."

"They want to rule. They want everything." Oritel added.

"Yes. They want to harness the creator power and turn it against its own creations for chaos and destruction. This will cause panic and fear and people will want to give in and give up." Faragonda shook her head.

"Don't give up hope. Everything will work out." Oritel muttered to himself. The words of the spirit woman echoed through his mind. "We can't just give in and give up. We need to fight them."

Faragonda eyed him. "I agree. We need to search for a way to defeat them. They have to have some weakness. Something must scare them."

"Some powerful magic." Oritel mumbled. "Something strong. Like the Dragon Fire." A thought dawned upon Oritel. "What if what they seek is their worst nightmare? Why else would they aim for Miriam? She strong and powerful. She's a threat to them. They wanted to control their enemy before she came to hunt them down."

"Makes sense." Faragonda agreed. She glanced down at Miriam's wound again. "The stream of poison is reducing. Much of it has exited the wound. We ought to move now."

Oritel nodded and scrambled to his feet. The two of them supported Miriam carefully and walked in the general direction Saladin had gone. "Who all came?" Oritel asked.

"Saladin, Griffin and I. Then Erendor, Radius, and Niobe had come with Miriam. We've all been looking for some four days now." Faragonda glanced at him. "When Miriam disappeared with Mandragora, Saladin did a tracking spell. The spell led us here. Just in time."

Oritel bowed his head and stared at the ground. "Thank-you. For not only finding me but for helping Miriam."

"We're not out of the woods yet. We need to get Miriam to a proper healer." Faragonda stated.

"Mandragora said that she and her mistresses were going to attack Alfea together." Oritel said. "We'll need to hurry to help them. They won't be able to withstand an attack from both the ancestresses and Mandragora."

"One step at a time Oritel. One step at a time." Faragonda said.


	20. Chapter 19: A Stranger's Reminder

**Chapter 19 - A Familiar Stranger's Reminder**

Pain throbbed in her arm with every heart beat. Miriam just wanted to scream. But screaming would require that she use what precious little energy she had, so she resisted the urge. Instead, she slowly opened her eyes to see what had happened.

The last thing Miriam recalled before she passed out was Mandragora leering over her. She thought Mandragora would've killed her after she'd passed out, but the woman must've had other plans entirely. Her first glance around told her she had no idea where she was.

The second glance told her she wasn't in Mandragora's clutches.

"Oritel?" Miriam whispered. It was hard to speak; her throat was dry and sore and her voice sounded rasped and hoarse. He held her in his arms and was walking. He looked down at her after she spoke his name.

"Miriam!" Oritel's look of desperation faded, leaving a look of relief to take over. "You're going to be alright. I promise."

"What happened?" Miriam asked dazedly. How did she end up with him? Mandragora didn't have any idea where he'd been. There was movement ahead of them and Miriam saw Faragonda walking with Niobe. She and Oritel were safe with the rescue group.

"Mandragora brought you to Obsidian. That was where I was trapped. She was going to hand you over to the Ancient Ancestresses, but they weren't there. She was called away to help them to finish off Alfea." Oritel looked ahead toward the rest of the group. "Faragonda and Saladin found us on Obsidian. They barely got us out of there before their magic was wiped out by the evil of Obsidian. Now we're going to find a healer."

Miriam tried to move, but her body disobeyed her demands. The aching in her body increased as she struggled to regain control. "I'm weakened." she said dumbly, and blushed after she said it.

"Mandragora poisoned you when you were attacked by some bug. Faragonda fought the poison with her magic." Oritel's eyes were shining as he looked at her. "You nearly died." The way he spoke it made Miriam's heart drop. He'd been scared for her. "If you'd died…I don't know what would've become of me." Oritel murmured. "Now that I've met you…I can't live without you."

Miriam gazed up at him. She felt the same way about him. There in his arms, she felt safest. Anywhere else wouldn't be the same. "I love you Oritel. When you were taken, I was willing to do anything to find you. I couldn't rest easy until I knew you were safe." Miriam felt tears in her eyes. She fought to blink them away.

"Those witches spoke of harming you. I couldn't do anything to stop them and I was so angry." Oritel's body tensed as he said the words. Then he relaxed. "I love you too, Miriam." Oritel confessed.

She smiled when he said that. Then a thought crossed her mind. "Oritel…I need to tell you something."

"Miriam! You're awake!" Niobe's voice interrupted Oritel and Miriam. Miriam looked up, rather irritated to be disturbed. She had to tell Oritel something important. "We were so worried for you."

"Yeah. You were almost like dead." Radius said solemnly. "We found Oritel!"

"I think she can see that, Radius." Erendor rolled his eyes. "He is carrying her."

"Faragonda is trying to get us to a healer. You need definite healing after what Mandragora did to you." Niobe's expression went grim.

"Shouldn't we go to Alfea? The Ancestresses and Mandragora are going to bombard the school!" Miriam shivered as she thought about the destruction that would bring to the beautiful establishment. "They wouldn't stand a chance! They need us!"

"They need you. Your powers are the only thing those witches fear. Your powers are the only thing that can take out Mandragora effectively." Erendor looked at her sternly. "And obviously you won't be able to do anything until you see a healer. It's just how it is."

"By the time we get there, Alfea will be gone!" Miriam said angrily.

"What are we going to do Miriam? Throw helpless you at them? You can't use your powers I bet." Erendor snapped sarcastically.

Heat rose in Miriam's cheeks. "Well, I won't have the people at Alfea dying just because I needed a healer."

"Quiet." Miss Griffin hissed from ahead. The group fell silent as they watched the three veterans tense in expectation.

"That magic is powerful." Faragonda whispered to Saladin.

"I feel it." Saladin nodded. "But where is it coming from?"

A fierce power seemed to permeate the air. Miriam's own powers seemed to stir. She felt Oritel tense as well. He sensed the magic too. "What is it?" Oritel breathed. "It feels familiar."

"I don't know." Miriam murmured. She flinched as a sudden blaze of light pervaded the air, blinding her. "What…" Miriam's voice trailed off as she saw a figure come through the brightness.

"Who are you?" Oritel asked, his tone defensive as he held Miriam closer to him.

The light faded and the figure became visible. The figure was actually cloaked making it hard for Miriam to determine the gender. Slowly the figure stepped toward Miriam and Oritel.

Immediately, Erendor and Radius tried to protect them, pulling out their swords and charging the mysterious stranger. Niobe and Faragonda held out their hands preparing themselves for the casting of some spell. Griffin and Saladin went about pulling out their own weapons of choice.

But the stranger raised a hand and flames erupted, knocking all of them to the ground. Miriam noted that the flames weren't even hot enough to burn them for the flames hadn't even singed their clothing, but they were powerful enough to throw them off their feet. The stranger wasn't aiming to hurt them. Miriam was about to say something when Saladin leaped up and charged again, his scepter swinging.

The stranger whipped around gracefully and caught the swinging scepter. Miriam caught sight of slender hands covered in pale pink gloves. The stranger was a female. The woman wrested the scepter out of Saladin's hands with a single calculated move and knocked him to the ground. All of this was done with unimaginable grace. Miriam could only stare as the figure turned back toward them.

Oritel gently set Miriam to the ground and took out his own weapon. Miriam tried to say something, but Oritel had already ran at the woman. The figure raised the scepter in her hands and blocked Oritel's blow. Before he could make his next move, the woman's foot flew out and kicked him in the chest. Oritel went flying backward, the wind knocked out of him.

Miriam could only stare helplessly as the woman continued her saunter over to Miriam. Her eyes took in everything about the woman. She noted the woman was barefooted except for accessories that went up her feet and wrapped around her legs. Miriam saw the woman also had pale skin tone, rather close to Miriam's own coloring. The dark blue robe rustled as the woman knelt next to Miriam.

"Leave her alone!" Niobe screamed as she scrambled to her feet . But the figure turned and threw out another flame tossing her back onto the ground.

"No!" Oritel roared. His voice became muffled as the woman threw up some sort of translucent orange barrier between them. Slowly she turned back to Miriam.

"What do you want from me?" Miriam whispered, her heart pounding fiercely. She was helpless and weak, lying there at the mercy of this stranger. "Are you aligned with the Ancestresses and their pet Mandragora?"

"No." The voice was soft and gentle. "I have come for other reasons."

Miriam licked her dry lips and laughed. "What reasons are those? Why don't you show yourself? If you wish to kill me, I wish to see my killer first."

"I have not come to kill you!" she snapped. Miriam could've swore she heard horror in her voice as she said it. "I've come to remind you. To keep you on the right path."

Miriam looked up into the darkened cowl, squinting to see the woman's face. She could barely make out the shape of large eyes glinting. There was a flash of light and Miriam saw they were a curious shade of blue. She looked toward the shield and saw the rest of the group trying to break through the shield.

She tensed as the stranger's gentle, warm hands slowly moved her injured arm. The woman seemed to gaze at the wound and carefully pressed her gloved fingers against it, gingerly assessing it. "Faragonda's magic cleansed it out pretty good. But not enough for me." The woman laid her hands on top of the wound and Miriam felt warmth. Heat flowed through Miriam, erasing all of her pain and exhaustion. The heat then seared in her arm, burning right where the wound was.

Miriam moaned as the searing intensified. Then it was over. The woman took her hands off and Miriam looked at her arm. It was healed. "You healed me." Miriam stared at the cloaked female.

"You need to fight them off. They mustn't take Alfea." The figure stood up slowly. "Go to Alfea. You won't defeat them, but you'll beat them down for now."

"I already knew I had to go to Alfea and fight that evil off. That's not much of a reminder." Miriam go to her feet and stood before the woman. They stood at about the same height, but Miriam still couldn't see her clearly.

"That's not the reminder I've come to give you." The woman said quietly. Miriam could hear muffled thuds as her friends' continued their useless attack on the barrier. But her focus never left the stranger who stood before her.

Oritel had been right when he said the stranger's presence felt familiar. Miriam looked at the figure and asked, "Remind me then."

The figure hesitated, then partially removed her hood to allow a bit of light to reveal her face. Miriam took in the large blue eyes and the pale complexion, the features she'd noted earlier. But her jaw nearly dropped as she saw brilliant red hair with gold streaks. The figure was quick to replace the cowl. "Don't lose hope, Miriam." she whispered. Then the figure was gone.


	21. Chapter 20: Doppelganger

**Chapter 20 - Doppelganger**

The barrier fell as the woman vanished. Oritel was the first to reach Miriam. He grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to look at him. Her gaze was unfocused, as though she were thinking about something other than everything that had just happened. "Miriam! Miriam, say something." Oritel pleaded.

Miriam's gaze slowly focused on him, her green eyes revealing shock. "I…she healed me." Miriam breathed.

Oritel's gaze fell to the once injured arm. Now it was fine, lacking the life threatening wound from earlier. "She what?"

"Is she alright!" Niobe was at Oritel's shoulder now, looking at Miriam with a worried expression. "That crazy chick didn't hurt her?"

"She would have never hurt me." Miriam said slowly. Obviously she wasn't as focused as Oritel had previously thought. But then she was completely focused, her eyes blazing with intense confidence and hate. "We need to go to Alfea. We have to stop those witches and their slave woman."

"But you were almost dead because of that wound! Now you're standing and telling us you want to have a showdown with evil?" Erendor looked incredulously at Miriam.

Faragonda, Griffin, and Saladin were all silent. Oritel watched them while Miriam and Erendor argued. The three veterans of magic all stood watching Miriam, as though Miriam's recovery were beyond belief. Had they never seen anything like that before? Finally Faragonda spoke.

"She's right."

Erendor and Miriam turned to Faragonda in surprise.

"We need to take the opportunity. Yes, Miriam has been healed by some stranger. That's a plus for us. She needs to face those Ancestresses. The won't be expecting her to have been healed." Faragonda looked at Griffin and Saladin. The two gave her nods of agreement.

"So that's that." Miriam said. "We're going to Alfea."

Griffin nodded. "I hope you're all prepared."

"Will you be opening a door?" Faragonda asked quietly. Saladin gave groan.

"Why yes. I thought I would." Griffin said with a sly smile.

"Prepare yourselves." Saladin muttered, annoyed.

Griffin raised her arms and "_Patefacio umbra ianua_." Her voice was heavy and low, the words filled with a dark mysterious power. As she spoke the shadows before them moved in reaction.

"Great. She opens a shadow portal." Saladin groaned again.

"Just for you Saladin. I know how much you love using shadow portals." Miss Griffin laughed.

"Is there something wrong with shadow portals?" Niobe asked cautiously.

The shadows had coalesced, forming a dark mass. Griffin walked toward it. She turned and looked at the group. "Well? I know my magic at work is awe inspiring, but we can't stand around all day." With that said, Miss Griffin turned on her heel and was the first to step through the portal.

"Hurry now." Miss Faragonda ushered the group forward. One after the other, Oritel's friends stepped through the dark portal. As Oritel stepped toward the swirling mass, he took a deep breath. Then he stepped into the mass.

Blood rushed in his ears as everything around him distorted. His heart pounded as the blinding dark rushed at him, merciless. The shadows seemed to taunt him and tear at his body and clothes. Oritel tried hard to focus on the mission at hand. Just being in a shadow portal for mere moments could drive a man mad, he thought to himself. He shook off the thought and pushed on forward, scrambling for the exit.

Just as Oritel had begun dreading eternal entrapment in the shadow portal, a hand grabbed his and pulled him from the dark. He clumsily stumbled out of the portal exit into the dismal gray of the realm of Magix. Though it was dismal, he was still grateful for arrival. Slowly he breathed out and glanced at the person whose hand he was holding. Miriam's bright eyes gazed back, a small smile on her lips.

"That wasn't as enjoyable as I'd hoped." Miriam commented quietly, just loud enough for Oritel to hear. Oritel gave her a gratifying smile.

They were interrupted from their moment by a thudding. Out of the shadowy mass tumbled Professor Saladin, cursing and shaking madly. Right behind him was Miss Faragonda, chuckling. "Saladin, it may have been years since you've taken one of Griffy's portals, but still…"

"Why do you think I've avoided the damned things!" Saladin shuddered. "You women are crazy! You act like those tortures are mere fair rides or simple runs in the park!"

Miss Griffin and Miss Faragonda laughed. "I did miss the two of you somewhat." Griffin turned to the portal and clapped her hands together. Slowly the portal closed, but the essence of it continued to pervade the are. "Enough of this though. We must move on."

Faragonda's gaze surveyed the land about them. "We're back in Magix, but I don't quite recall this landscape."

"That's because it's my turf, Faragonda. You know the land between Alfea, Red Fountain, and the city of Magix well. But you hardly know of the forests surrounding Cloud Tower." Griffin too, glanced around. "We're two hours walk from the Alfea school. This way." And Griffin headed off into the undergrowth. The others all followed her.

"What I wouldn't give to hear Luna complain about off-trail hiking." Niobe commented.

"Yeah." Radius said, a dreamy look evident on his face.

"Somebody smack him. I'm going to throw up." Erendor complained. "My friends meet a bunch of girls and suddenly they're all making that creepy look. Radius, Teredor, and Oritel!"

Radius got defensive. "Not our fault you couldn't get a girl if your life depended on it."

"Quit it boys." Niobe said annoyed. "Now's not really the time to fight about you dates for Homecoming. I was just trying to brighten the mood a bit with a joke." She traipsed ahead, her annoyance visible in her swagger, muttering about boys and their immaturity. Radius and Erendor looked at one another, tension sparking between them, then they too followed Niobe ahead. Oritel and Miriam were left behind to walk with one another.

They walked in silence mostly. Words weren't really needed. Miriam's hand was warm and soft in Oritel's. He'd listen to her steady breathing as they hiked, the lightness in her step as she gracefully walked over the overgrown grass and bushes. Oritel knew he ought to enjoy these moments with Miriam, for one never knew when a moment would be their last. Especially in times like such. And he did enjoy them.

"Were you scared in the realm of the Ancient Ancestresses?" Miriam asked, breaking the wall of silence.

"Yes. I pray I'll never end up there again." Oritel shivered. "I don't know how I even survived there. That place wears on a person and breaks their will if they're there for long. When Faragonda, Griffin, and Saladin arrived, I saw the dark aura of the realm take its toll on them. But like I said before, the only thing that scared me more than Obsidian was the idea that those witches were going to hurt you."

The silence took over again and lasted for over an hour after that. Oritel began to notice destruction the closer they got to Alfea. This made his dread grow with every step. What if they were too late? What if Alfea had already fallen? How many of his comrades would he find dead or injured when he arrived? How many fairies, for that matter? Soon he began to hear the sounds of war. Cries of Mandragora's bug creatures, screams of people. Then he felt war. The shaking of the ground as powerful magic was summoned and thrown at the enemy. The thickness of the air as dust that hadn't quite settled yet floated around.

Miriam whimpered next to him and clung to hand as though it were a life line. Oritel squeezed back and mentally prepared himself to face whatever lay ahead. He had to stay strong now. That was what a good leader would do. And, hopefully, one day he'd be a leader.

No matter how one would try, there was no preparing for what came next. Griffin led the group to the summit of a hill, bringing the elegant Alfea school into view. Days before, the view would've awed the viewer with its extraordinary beauty. The view did awe now, but in a more horrific sense.

"Oh my…" Faragonda gasped.

The battle had spilled out beyond the Alfea school gates into the surrounding forest. Many fights had broken out all over, but Oritel soon noticed remnants of a battle plan. Squadrons of Specialists had been forced to break rank and fight the bugs off individually. Fairies of different levels flew over the forest, throwing blasts of magical energy at the creatures. Many of the fairies were being taken down by aerial bugs, so they didn't even have an edge in the air. Much of the artfully designed school had been reduced to rubble. Towers had been destroyed, windows shattered, gates torn down. Everything was chaos. An organized chaos.

"Look!" Niobe pointed up above the Alfea school and Oritel turned his gaze to see what she was pointing at. He noticed a fairy had flown up above the rest and faced Mandragora high above the ruined school. He squinted hard to see who it was, but was surprised when he figured it out. He gasped.

"Who is it? I can't tell." Miriam looked at Oritel.

Oritel looked at Miriam, then back at the figure fighting Mandragora. "Miriam. It's you."


	22. Chapter 21: Showdown

_**Chapter 21 - Showdown**_

"_Winx!"_

_As Miriam and Niobe's voices chimed the word in unison, magic flowed over them and their transformations began to take place. Heat flowed through Miriam and she couldn't help but feel a bit of giddiness as she powered up. Her dirty, torn clothes were replaced with the lovely, sparkling green outfit and the strength of the Dragon Fire flowed through her veins. As soon as the wings came on she was airborne, heading for her newfound twin._

"_Miriam!" A voice cried out from behind her, but she ignored it. Her focus was on the new Miriam. She had to find out who this mysterious Miriam was._

"_It's impossible!" Mandragora was shouting. "I left you on Obsidian to die!"_

_The other Miriam's eyes grew wide in fear. "Well…you made a mistake then!" she said with exaggerated bravado. "I'm obviously not there and you're here seeing me with your own eyes!" Miriam noticed the other Miriam's voice wavered as she spoke._

"_I'll have to kill you in person than! I'll be sure you're dead before I leave your carcass for my bugs to feast upon!" Mandragora cackled. She threw her powerful magic at the other Miriam and the other Miriam dodged the attack. "You won't escape your fate this time!"_

"_You mean my fate to take you down?" Miriam challenged then._

_Both Mandragora and the other Miriam turned their gazes toward Miriam. "What?" Mandragora stared in disbelief. "How are there two of you?"_

_The other Miriam looked happily at Miriam. "Took you long enough to show. Now give me a hand with this witch."_

_Mandragora's hands flew up immediately to prepare a magic blast, but Miriam was faster. Flames erupted from her hands and hit Mandragora hard, throwing the vile woman toward the fighting below. She regained her balance and flew after Miriam then, her foul magic flaring to life in her own hands. Miriam turned and flew, Mandragora in hot pursuit. Once in a while she'd turn to throw a blast back at the woman, then avoid the Mandragora's retaliation._

_A wicked laugh filled the air. "You won't live after I'm through with you, Miriam." Mandragora let out another guffaw of cruel laughter._

"_You won't win Mandragora!" Miriam shouted back angrily, the anger giving her a burst of speed. She suddenly stopped her flying and whipped around, her Dragon Fire flames bursting forth from her outstretched hands. Mandragora blocked the attack and continued closing in on Miriam._

"_It doesn't matter if I win so long as my mistresses get what they want." Mandragora snarled. "Killing you for them would be one of their victories more than it'd be mine. I just want to serve the Ancient Ancestresses."_

"_Total subservience suits you well." Miriam said boldly. "Not everyone is so open about it."_

_Screaming, Mandragora tried to tackle Miriam out of the air. Miriam dodged her and threw a well aimed blast at the deranged woman. The woman fell and slammed hard into the ground below and didn't move. Miriam flew over to the other Miriam._

"_Well done, Miriam." The other Miriam smiled. "Couldn't have done it better myself."_

_Miriam could only stare at the twin. Couldn't have done it better myself? This girl was her. "How are you me?" Miriam asked._

_The other Miriam was about to say something, but was shot out of the sky. Miriam turned and saw three menacing figures in the sky. Their voices sliced through reality and screamed through Miriam's mind as they laughed. "And Magix struggles to tread water."_

"_No! Lysliss. We mustn't be hasty to judge. That will be our downfall for certain." One of the figures glared at Miriam, then looked to the ground where the twin lay. "How are there two of them?"_

"_Mandragora told us she left Miriam dying of poison on Obsidian!" Lysliss hissed. "She lied to us!"_

_The third member finally spoke. "Neither of them look like they're dying. We'll just have to make Mandragora's report true."_

_The trio then surrounded Miriam. Miriam spun around, looking at the faces of each of them. "You don't frighten me. Because of you, the magical universe has been victim to terror. I'm going to relieve them of that terror." Flames engulfed Miriam's hands._

"_Brave. It's only logical you and Oritel would produce children of strength and courage. Too bad we have to prevent this." Lysliss laughed._

_Miriam stared at the trio. They were more afraid of Miriam and Oritel's children who didn't yet exist. She remembered what the figure who healed her had mentioned. Miriam wasn't destined to take down the Ancient Ancesstresses. That didn't mean she wouldn't try take them down. "Dragon flame!" Miriam cried out. The flames in her hands erupted and she threw a blast at the witches. They hissed and dodged the attack._

"_You dare to attack us! You impudent child!" A witch threw a lightning shock at her. Miriam flew up to avoid the attack._

"_Dark void!" Lysliss' voice echoed and dark energy surrounded Miriam. The witch cackled as Miriam flew helplessly, trying to escape. "Belladonna! Finish her off!"_

"_Ice storm!" Belladonna bellowed._

"_Dragon sphere!" Miriam threw up a sphere of energy. But the cold penetrated the sphere and Miriam felt the temperature drop._

"_You aren't strong enough to challenge us!" Lysliss laughed. "You'll be easy to destroy! I don't know what we were worried about!"_

"_Lunar shine!" Pale light filled the darkness and Miriam was no longer surrounded by Lysliss' dark prison. Miriam blinked and turned to see Niobe and the other Miriam, their wings fluttering fiercely. "You made a mistake attacking Alfea and kidnapping Oritel! It's time you paid for your actions!" Miriam saw the other Miriam turn around and suddenly she was Luna._

"_Luna!" Miriam cried out happily. The doppelganger was Luna._

"_Tidal blast!" Niobe shouted and water flew from her hands outward in a sweeping motion. The water smacked into the unprotected Ancesstresses, throwing them off their well balanced levitation._

"_You'll all be destroyed!" Belladonna screamed._

"_Moon beam!" A bright beam of light emitted from Luna's palms and smacked into Belladonna. "Au contraire! Defeat is on your horizon!" Luna laughed. _

" _Ancestrals! Attack them individually!" Belladonna shouted. The trio split up and flew at each of the girls._

"_You've got water powers? Let's see how conductive you are!" Tharma aimed a slash of lightning at Niobe. The lightning struck Niobe and she fell from the sky._

_Lysliss circled Luna. "Ring of shadow." she hissed. Dark energy surrounded Luna and engulfed her completely, cutting off her cry of surprise. The dark energy contracted and then exploded. Luna was dropped, and she hurtled to the fighting below._

_Belladonna had risen up before Miriam and the two were face to face. She reached out one of her ghostly hands and snatched Miriam. "Feeling cold dear?" Belladonna cackled. _

_Miriam felt a sudden cold rise up from her toes and flow through her veins. She gasped. "No!" Miriam struggled in Belladonna's grip._

"_Yes. I'm freezing your body. What will you do about it? You don't stand a chance." Belladonna laughed again, overjoyed by Miriam's pain._

_Miriam threw her head back and gasped as the cold rose toward her chest. Her heart was beating hard, trying to keep her warm blood flowing through her body. She tried to kick her legs, but she couldn't feel them. The cold kept creeping._

"_Miriam! Miriam fight her!" Oritel's voice shouted from below. Miriam could barely hear him. Blood was rushing in her ears. Darkness shadowed the corners of her vision. She felt like she was in two places at once, both in her body and outside of it. She was dying._

"_Don't you worry Oritel. You'll be my next victim!" Belladonna shrieked with laughter._

"_Miriam! Don't give up hope! Don't lose hope!" Oritel shouted._

"_Silence him!" Belladonna cried out. "He's annoying me!"_

_Miriam saw Tharma go down and snatch up Oritel. Oritel cursed her and struggled helplessly. Tharma's hand sparked with electricity and Oritel cried out in pain. Tharma gleefully laughed._

_Your love must remain strong, Miriam. Remember that._

Fire flared deep within Miriam. Miriam reached for it and held tight to it. She lifted her head and stared Belladonna in the eyes. "I won't defeat you, but I'll beat you down for now." Miriam growled.

_Don't lose hope Miriam._

Belladonna stared at her, her eyes narrowing and her grip tightened on Miriam. "What did you say?"

"Let go!" Miriam screamed, her scream echoing and sounding louder than she meant it to sound. Dragon fire erupted from her and blew Belladonna back. Her grip on Miriam dropped and Miriam fluttered her wings rapidly to stay aloft. "Dragon fury!" Miriam shouted. She bombarded the trio of shocked witches with her second attack. They struggled and screeched horrifically. The magic flew from Miriam, and she let it go with no restraint. She didn't hold back. She let them have everything she had.

The last thing she saw was the trio of witches cowering and fleeing. Then she was falling. The darkness that had taken over the corners of her vision continued to overcome her vision entirely. She fell into unconsciousness.


	23. Chapter 22: After Everything

**Chapter 22- After Everything…**

Oritel sighed as he fell into the grass next to his friends Erendor and Radius. The sun shined high above them, the skies were an endless blue except for the white tufts of cloud that roamed them. Everything was a picturesque ideality. Nothing seemed wrong.

One wouldn't have thought that just a week ago, the realm had been under siege. No one would've guessed that the skies had been gray and rain was the dominant weather. Not a single person would believe that the two architecturally genius schools one could view from the top of the hill were ruined and lay scattered in pieces throughout the emerald forests that blanketed the region. Unless you were a student of one of these schools. Then you'd known and experienced it all.

Sitting up, Oritel's gaze landed on his friends. Each and every one of them had grown since the events that had ruined the realm had started. He could see weariness and an eerie calm in each of their demeanors as they relaxed on that hill. Even cool, collected Erendor seemed to have an edge to his movements, as though the shadows could turn up some enemy. Teredor sat off, apart from them some, his eyes reflecting a hardness that hadn't been there before he came to Red Fountain. Radius' eyes were closed, but Oritel knew he would jump at the slightest provocation.

"Radius!" Luna's voice called.

Radius leaped up quickly and sprinted down the hill. Luna ran up to meet him, her light blonde hair flowing behind her like a silvery cape. The two met up and Luna sprang on him. "How's Alfea?" Radius asked politely.

Oritel, Erendor, and Teredor all carefully made their way down the slope. Niobe stood next to the happy couple, appearing rather annoyed with their romance. She waved happily to Teredor as he walked up.

"Alfea's great! Without the warring and the evil, it's as dull and stressful as I predicted." Luna said sarcastically. "And we're still going to have a Homecoming Dance! I'm ecstatic!" Luna squealed.

"That's a big word for you." Erendor teased, earning himself glares from Luna and Radius both.

"I hoping I'll see you at the dance." Teredor muttered softly to Niobe.

Niobe gave him a brilliant smile. "I'm hoping you'll get a chance to dance with me. I'd like you see some of my moves."

"Where's Miriam?" Erendor asked in attempt to break the romance.

"Err…well, um." Luna looked at Niobe. Niobe shrugged. "We don't know?" Luna suggested.

"She recovered nicely from that little showdown she had with those witches." Niobe added quickly.

Oritel nodded at them, appreciative of the reassurance. He'd been worried about Miriam. When he'd left, she'd still been unconscious due to power exhaustion. The Red Fountain students had been so busy cleaning up the ruins of their school, Oritel hadn't had any time to check up on her. But he still wanted to see her. To see for himself she was alright. Only then would he feel more at ease.

"She wondered where you were when she first woke up." Luna winked at Oritel. "She was very worried for your safety. I'm sure she wants to see you ASAP too." Luna giggled in a girlish manner, causing Niobe to roll her eyes.

"I think I'll go and find her then." Oritel started off.

"I'll go with." Erendor said hastily. The two of them walked off in the general direction they'd seen the Alfea school.

"I really want to be with her Erendor." Oritel said to break the silence.

Erendor looked at him. "What about your arranged marriage? How are you going to break that to her. I'm no love-guru, but I can tell you that is no turn-on to a girl."

Oritel gave his friend a grin. "I received some very interesting news last night. Apparently the girl I was supposed to be engaged to wasn't a good candidate for the Queen of Sparks role. My parents are continuing their search for my wife, but I think I'll present my own wife in a couple of years."

"Lucky. You are l-u-c-k-y. I mean seriously. With everything that's happened in the past month and you still get the girl of your dreams?" Erendor shook his head in amazement.

"I don't have her. Yet." Oritel threw Erendor a cocky grin.

"Boy, aren't you confident today?" Erendor laughed. "Well I'm going back to Red Fountain where the lovey-dovey crap can't fester in my mind. Go get her tiger." Erendor growled, then ducked as Oritel tried to smack him upside the head. He ran off laughing, leaving Oritel to endure the long walk to Alfea by himself.

The Alfea school seemed even more magical on that ideal day. Much of the destroyed portions had been restored with magic. As Oritel stepped onto the well groomed grounds, he caught sight partially restored tower. The rubble that had littered the area had been cleaned up. Girls strolled through the grounds carrying books and bags. Alfea had pretty much recovered from the blow it had received just days earlier.

A number of Alfea students waved to him and called his name. He smiled at them but remained focused on finding Miriam. His eyes strained to try find her among the relaxed fairies. He sighed when he didn't spot her among them.

"Oritel? What are you doing here?"

Oritel turned to see an auburn haired girl looking at him. She looked rather bored, but he could see a worn look in her eyes. "I don't mean to be rude, but who are you?"

"I'm Samara." Samara looked at him expectantly as though he ought to have recognized her. She sighed and rolled her eyes. "I'm one of high-class society from Eraklyon." Samara sounded annoyed.

"Oh. Hi." Oritel said, blankly. "I'm looking for Miriam. You wouldn't know where she is would you?"

Samara sighed and rolled her eyes again. " Of course you're looking for Miriam. She's in the tower." She made a lazy gesture toward one of the finished towers and jaunted away toward a group of girls.

Oritel looked up at the tower. He could see Miriam looking off into the distance. He walked into the Alfea school and hurried up a set of stairs. As he approached the top, Oritel slowed, quieting his steps. He carefully walked out into the open air.

Miriam didn't turn or notice him, but continued to search for something on the distant horizon. Her red hair fell in beautiful curls down her back. The sunlight played on her face, chasing shadows away from her lovely features. Seeing Miriam like this made Oritel's breath catch. He stepped forward quietly and stood next to her, acting as though he were trying to find what she was looking for in the distance. She looked up at him and smiled, making Oritel's heart drop.

"Hello." Miriam said softly. Her green gaze was gentle and loving as she looked up at him. "I'm glad to see you are okay."

"You suffered worse than I did." Oritel laid his hands flat on the low wall. He threw a grin at Miriam. "I don't fall to easily."

"But you do get kidnapped easily." Miriam retorted. She returned his grin. "I'm kidding. I was worried about you."

Oritel turned to her and took her hands into his own. "How do you think you made me feel? You only took on the evil that had threatened the universe. By yourself. That was…"

"Crazy? Insane? Stupid?" Miriam pulled away and hugged herself. "Trust me, I've heard it all. They never wanted me to fight the Ancestresses off. That's why they had me sent away. That's why they had Luna pretending to be me." Miriam sighed. "But they don't understand that I had to. Nobody understands."

Oritel took Miriam by the shoulders. "I was going to say that was amazing and brave. And I do understand." He took a deep breath and took a leap of faith. "You saw the woman in your dream too. The ghost woman."

Miriam looked up at him in surprise. "How did you know? Did you see what happened to us. In that nightmare?" Her eyes looked up at him, shock and relief visible in them.

"Yes. You were trapped. I tried to save you…" Oritel trailed off. "I'm not sure what happened after that. The dream switched over to something else. That's when she came to me. She told me not to give up hope and that everything would work out."

"That's what she said to me! But she added that my love must remain strong." Miriam gently placed her hands on Oritel's chest. "And it did."

Oritel's pulse jumped when she said that. "Miriam…after everything that has happened, I've never stopped loving you for a minute. Every minute away from you was a torture. Not knowing if you were safe, it nearly killed me." He cupped Miriam's chin and brought her gaze up to meet his. "Miriam. I love you. And I want to be with you."

Miriam's eyes filled with tears and they glistened as she spoke. "I love you. And I want to be with you too." And she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.


End file.
